5 things to watch for (or continue to watch) in 2010.
The next version of the popular Microsoft Office Suite will be released in June 2010. A free public beta version of MS Office 2010 is available now for download (I am using it today). Office Web Apps, the online component of Microsoft Office will include online versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint.
Prediction: Acceptance of Office 2010 upon its release will be better than that of Office 2007, primarily because the interface (the ribbon bar) is similar and because a number of new features are being introduced which should enhance productivity.
Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter
Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter really hit the mainstream during the last year. I’ve noticed that more people are using using their Facebook pages as their homepage. The main attraction of these sites continues to be the ease with which one communicate with and can keep track of many friends, acquaintances and business associates in one place.
Predition: Facebook will continue to see the most growth, not only in absolute user numbers but also the time that people spend on the site itself. Facebook is also the most open of the platforms, so expect new applications to be integrated with Facebook this year that will increase its value.
WordPress
Blogging will continue to become more popular and accessible to a wider range of people
WordPress, the widely-used blogging platform, is simple and full-featured, all while offering an array of templates and plugins to alter its look and feel and extend its use. Full-featured websites are now being built using the WordPress platform, at little cost, and maintained people with little prior web experience.
Prediction: Tom’s Computer Service and Grundig Consulting will rollout a simple, reasonably-priced WordPress package, targeted at the business owners. This package will be designed to get people started with creating and maintaining their own blog, and will include:
1) Assistance registering a domain
2) Help setting up a hosting account with WordPress capability
3) Assistance with the initial WordPress ‘5-minute’ setup
4) Important WordPress concepts
5) A tutorial on adding pages and posts to the blog and editing individual pages.
6) More . . .
Other concepts, such as customizing WordPress blogs using themes and adding plugins for additional functionality, will be introduced.
Google Adwords and other Online Advertising platforms (Bing, Yahoo!, Facebook)
Online advertising will continue to take market share from traditional media such as newspapers and magazines because it is more targeted, effective and budget is entirely controllable.
– Google is the current king of online search advertising, but Craigslist.org is also worthy of mention as the 7th most popular website in the world and because it’s virtually free. (40% of my new clients come from either Google paid search (AdWords) or Craigslist. The rest are referrals). For a wealth of FREE information regarding Google AdWords and business marketing and business strategy, visit PerryMarshall.com.
Prediction 1: More smart small businesses will advertise using online, targeting their ads towards a specific audience and adjusting their budget and ads frequently.
Prediction 2: Facebook will command a larger share of the online advertising market, Bing adCenter will gain share, Yahoo! share will decline and Google Share (%) will decline slightly but remain king, and overall online advertising revenue will rise for each of the above. Image-based advertising become more popular.
Cloud Computing, Virtualization and Browser Competition
– Cloud Computing, Virtualization and Browser advancements deserve much attention, as this is where all the action is in business computing today and for the foreseeable future. Businesses are becoming much more flexible and are reducing their energy costs through the proper application of these technologies.
Prediction: I will address virtualization, cloud computing and Browser advancements in the upcoming months.
What are your predictions for 2010? What have I left out. Am I wrong with some of the above predictions? Why or why not? Join the discussion at grundigit.com.
