A helicopter view of SMB tech trends in 2012
A recent list of technology predictions put forward by the SMG Group suggests that progressive SMBS will invest up to 73% more in technology in 2012 than they did in 2011.
The report said that around 50% of all SMBs have now launched a social media presence. However, many confirm they are just too busy to keep their social hubs updated!
The SMB Group also concludes, as many others do, that mobile app use will extend beyond email to business applications.? At least 52% of SMBs may start implementing mobile payment strategies for their clients and customers.
At least 33% of all SMBs plan to implement some form of online Analytics system to help them crunch data and analyze social graphs.
The increasing use of Smartphones and Tablets by employees, will create a number of IT challenges. Those SMBs that stick with on-premise solutions to drive their IT will experience a number of infrastructure growing pains. MidPhase Cheap Web Hosting is likely to become increasingly attractive to those SMBs seeking to cut both cost and complexity.
2012 will also see the continued rise of the Accidental Entrepreneur. Many startups will prosper simply because they unintentionally created a solution for existing companies. They will morph from freelancers and contractors into LLCs and S-Corps.? Many will resist hiring employees and exist as one-person operations.
While initially slow on this point, SMBs will begin testing new collaboration portals like Yammer and Google Apps to drive their business processes and aid communication with customers. An increase of between 28-35% is expected in this area.
Finally, SMBs will continue to seek out remote hosting providers to help them drive websites and deploy business-related tools.? These may include WordPress, Drupal, Joomla and various E-commerce platforms.
This is part of what is known as the IT-as-a-Service (ITaaS) which is transforming SMB business processes over the Internet.