Small Business Shift

Is your company using the Internet to advertise, run your operations, or better connect with customers? And is it working? If so, then I’d like to feature your business here on Small Business Shift.

Google announced today that they are now allowing businesses to respond to reviews on Google Places. This is great news, because online reviews are increasingly important for consumers. The ability to respond gives you some control over how your business is portrayed.

Google is going to be gradually opening up “Tags” to the entire US. Tags is an advertising feature for local businesses, allowing companies to get a special marker next to their business location, for $25/month.

David Mihm just published the 2010 edition of his excellent Local Search Ranking Factors. If you want to understand how the experts are thinking about local search, it’s a great resource.

Just this week, a startup called Square launched its iPhone and Android applications. Square looks to make a big difference for small businesses, by enabling the acceptance of credit card payments directly on a cell phone.

Welcome to Small Business Shift. I’ll be providing all the news and reviews needed to make the Internet work for your business. This site is a long time in the making –