The incredible growth of Facebook and its importance to businesses continues unabated. Hitwise showed this week that Facebook has surpassed Google as the most visited web site in the U.S., surpassing Google.
We are just about ready to push the CloudProfile iPhone app into the App Store. Should be a solid improvement for our users who have iPhones. For those who don't, remember that we have full mobile publishing via email already in place as well.
Interesting article from eMarketer validating what many of us have experienced in the real-world - the fact that a potential customer will be more likely to make a purchase from a business in the future after they have become a Fan or Follower of that business in social media environments like Facebook and Twitter.
This makes sense, as the non-intrusive updates and impressions that a potential customer receives about a business through these environments keep them thinking about the business on an going basis. That little bit of additional mind share leads that potential customer to be more comfortable with the business and think of them when they are ready to make a purchase.
Viewed in light of the tools that make it simple for businesses to manage their online presence across the web, these findings eliminate any excuses that businesses might have for not participating in social media.
Well, at last the reason for me being a little quiet during the past two months is nearing its end. The big news is that SMBLive, the company behind CloudProfile where I was CEO, has been acquired by ReachLocal. You can see the formal announcement of the acquisition here - http://www.reachlocal.com/press/reachlocal-acquires-smblive.
I am thrilled about the combination with ReachLocal. In the acquisition process, we found that our new colleagues at ReachLocal share our DNA and passion for helping small and medium businesses to digitize and leverage the web. Through the combination with ReachLocal we are also able to bring our customers significantly more scale and a deeper product portfolio of paid advertising and marketing services. Finally, we realize that small businesses often need hand holding and support as they embrace the web, and through the more than 30 offices of ReachLocal we can now bring a uniquely local touch to our customers.
I will be expanding upon the rationale for the merger and our roadmap in the coming months as we are able to share the details. In the meantime, please keep pounding on us and providing us with your feedback on CloudProfile. We thank you for your support and are here to help you!
-Alex
This video demonstrates how "books" could be reinvented leveraging the form factor of the iPad. It's going to be crazy cool.
Learn more and get your own CloudProfile site FREE from CloudProfile in just a few minutes.
