I found this article today to be pretty good. Check it out below, most of these apps are so common now

A few weeks back I wrote a popular post about the best apps for job seekers that was very well received. I promised I’d share the top apps I use to make my life as an entrepreneur easier. It wasn’t easy, as I have over 100 apps on my iPad and Android (don’t judge me). It might seem like overkill, but it’s important as a small business owner to be able to do business anywhere, any time, with anyone. And to do that, I need the apps to be on both devices since I’m never without one or the other. You never want to miss an opportunity to turn a contact or chance meeting into a client.

Here are some of the apps I use to keep my business humming along.

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My Finances:

Square- Let’s start with the obvious. I need to be able to take a payment anywhere, any time and the days of those bulky POS (the S stands for SALES…get your mind out the gutter) terminals. Square allow me to insert a little square dongle (hence the name) into my device and with the click of an app and swipe of a card, I can process credit card payments on the spot. It only costs me 2.75% per swipe and my money is transferred into my bank account within a day or two. There are no other fees and even the dongle is free. Easy breezy. And I just heard they came out with a device for cabbies that they’re testing in New York. Go Square!

Paypal- OK I know some folks don’t like Paypal, but honestly, I’ve been with them since the very beginning. They now have an app where I can just log in, send a payment request to someone and they get an email letting them know to make a payment. I use the standard service and I don’t pay any monthly fees. They charge you on a sliding scale 2.2 – 2.9% plus 30 cents each transaction. I can even create invoices.  But what I like about Paypal is that I can process higher priced services like consulting fees and the like without a cap on transaction amounts. Plus some people just prefer to pay via Paypal.

Intuit Online Payroll- Yes! You can even process your payroll via an app. Intuit let’s you set up your account online (a tedious but well worth it process) and you download the app to your device. Then you can process payroll for your employees. The app is free but the service is $39 per month. Right now they are offering a 30 day free trial. They also offer the GoPayment service that is similar to Square. But if you have employees and you’re always on the go, Intuit Online Payroll keeps you current and professional.

And for honorable mentions, the banks and investment brokerages I use all have apps so I can access information about my money at all times. I also use Mint.com (there’s an app for that!) and XE Mobile Currency (which is a foreign currency converter). It comes in handy when you’re traveling abroad and need to do a quick on the spot currency conversion.

Productivity:

eFax Mobile- I have been using eFax since the beginning of time. I love being able to access my faxes (albeit rare) via email instead of relying on a bulky machine and phone line. eFax has an app where you can view all of your faxes from your devices. You can send, view and sign faxes with eFax Mobile.I can opt to store them in my eFax account or move them over to my Dropbox. The app is free, but the service carries a fee. If you get minimal faxes, then the Plus subscription would suit you. You get 150 faxed pages per month for $16.95 per month. The Pro subscription comes with 200 faxed pages and it’s $19.95 per month.

USPS Mobile- I hate standing in line at the post office. With this app, I’m able to determine postage and buy postage without having to endure those long lines. I can also schedule pickups, track packages and scan packages. I can say it’s been a life saver for me. The only thing it can’t do is check my P.O. Box. LOL

Qrafter- Speaking of scanning, I use this app to both read and create scannable QR codes. I simply use the camera on my device to capture the image and I’m all set. There is a basic and a Pro version. The Pro version costs $2.99.

Printback by Xerox Mobile- I don’t care what they say. There is some comfort in knowing that you’ll be able to print anywhere as long as you have that app. This app is free and supports most Microsoft Office and PDF documents. The best part is you’re not running around looking for a computer to stick your flash drive in or looking to connect or download software to connect to your laptop. You simply choose your document (usually from a Dropbox folder), determine the size you need, then let the app do the rest.

DocuSign- How many times have you had a deal delayed because you have to wait until you received the documents (or send them to a client) to sign and get started? DocuSign takes care of all of that. I keep a standard version of all my contracts and agreements in Dropbox (that name keeps coming up quite often, doesn’t it?) for easy access. Once the documents are updated and ready to execute, I log into DocuSign to get the required signatures…without having to use a printer. You can sign a Word, JPEG or PDF document. The only thing I don’t like is I have to use my finger. I’m waiting on a stylus type instrument to make it easier to sign.

QuickOffice Pro- This is a life saver! If ever I need to edit a word, excel or powerpoint document on the go, this app is my saving grace. Now, I did opt for the paid Pro version, which was $14.95, but because you can only view PDFs on it and not edit, I had to supplement it with another new find (which I’ll talk about next). You can create, edit and share all Microsoft documents with this app. And you don’t lose any formatting! I have not regretted buying the pro version.

OnLive Desktop (powered by Microsoft)- I like that this also allow you to edit and work on Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents. OnLive opens up to look just like your Windows desktop with the icons for each program on the ‘desktop’. You can open documents you’ve stored in the system in any of the programs to edit in real time just like you would on your PC. Don’t believe me? Check it out. It also allows you to store documents, so Dropbox may be repetitive. Both QuickOffice and OnLive Desktop can be synced with your Dropbox account.

Dropbox- OK, if you haven’t heard of Dropbox by now, where the heck have you been? I keep my important documents in Dropbox to use from any device at any time. I have a free account but you can opt for a paid account. My basic account has 2GB of storage. The more people you invite or refer to Dropbox, the more chances you have to earn additional storage space. You can instantly send a document right from your smart phone or tablet after an impromptu meeting and it gets delivered right to their inbox. It’s a must have for easy access and quick retrieval.

Read More here: http://www.empowerme.org/index.php/2012/03/08/apps-entrepreneurs/

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Leading email and social marketing firm iContact is launching a no-cost version of its flagship product that will better enable Web professionals, community organizations and small businesses without large budgets to communicate with their subscribers and fans via email, Facebook and Twitter.

The iContact Free Edition allows individuals and businesses with subscriber lists of 500 or less to manage a contact database, send out emails and social media messages, track the opens, clicks and social views and conduct surveys. Features of the free edition include the following:

Read More…

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Place the included sign-up form on your Web site		Campaign builder 150 professional email designs Huge 1,500+ Image Library Option to upload your own images HTML & text emails Auto Save feature Advanced editor Now-or-later scheduling Ability to tailor emails to various interest groups
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Easily generate report		List Manager Keep names, addresses and campaign history at your fingertips Segment your emails by interest or demographic information View reports on subscriber responses Easy import/export feature
Find out more		Real-time reports Undeliverable emails Unsubscribe requests Number opened Click-through rates to your website
		Sign-up forms Standard & custom questions Question sorting Custom design features Return links Form preview Link generator (text & button) HTML code for link
		Other features Bounce handling Unsubscribe handling Opt-in confirmation Anti-spam protection Spam reporting links Custom e-mail messages

The more you focus on SEO strategy, the more you might begin to think you can outsmart Google. But Dharmesh Shah argues in an article at MarketingProfs.com that gaming the system with sneaky SEO techniques is, in the long run, a losing proposition: “It’s safe to assume that if you try to exploit a hole in the algorithm today, your advantage is going to be temporary,” he says. “More importantly, you carry a significant risk of having your Web site penalized or banned.”

According to Shah, some slight-of-hand tricks you should avoid include:

Link farms. Most SEO professionals agree that the number of inbound links plays a critical role in search rankings. Some less scrupulous practitioners, therefore, create a group of dummy Web sites for the sole purpose of linking to the actual Web site.

Keyword stuffing. Once upon a time, the constant repetition of certain keywords might have manipulated rankings. But no more–search engines got wise to this practice, and it’s now a wasted effort.

Hidden text. Placing white text on a white background–visible to spiders, but not to humans–is a seemingly invisible way to load a page with rank-improving content. But, he notes, “Regardless of how sophisticated the approach, it is still going to be detected at some point.”

The Po!nt: “An Internet strategy that is predicated on outsmarting Google is not a smart strategy,” says Shah. “Working with search engines instead of trying to exploit them is the only approach that works in the long term.”

Advertising does not have to cost a lot of money. Some of the most effective ads can be very inexpensive.

Word-of-mouth advertising is often misunderstood. It cannot be passive if it is to be effective. You have to ask customers and friends and acquaintances for referrals- ask them to tell their pals about what a good job you do.

E-mail marketing, if done correctly, can be an inexpensive and quick way of reaching a very large audience. E-mailing advertisements (with permission to have the recipient’s e-mail address) can still become redundant and the recipient will likely ask to be taken off the mailing list unless you:

• Offer new discounted products or services regularly
• Provide very targeted mailings
• Offer some content

Even two or three sentences of original content can provide a reason to read your e-mail. It can also support the advertising that otherwise may be deleted. Short bits of information, such as five tips for a healthy lawn from a lawn care company or dressing for success from a clothing retailer are ways to keep your audience reading your e-mails. Establishing your own newsletter (which may only be a few paragraphs) can draw the attention of your readers. When e-mailing customers, you also need:

• A catchy headline
• A recognizable company name in the “from” box so they’ll know it’s from your business
• A simple one-click manner in which they can get more information on specific products or services
• A means of reaching customer service

Since you may only have one second to capture the reader before he or she hits delete, it’s to your benefit to make sure something interesting shows up in the window that displays part of the e-mail prior to the reader actually opening it. This window can literally provide you a “window of opportunity” to grab their attention. Make this about “them.” Unlike a press release, which tells the media what your business is up to, e-mail marketing needs to focus on benefits to the customer. Once you’ve got them reading, you can put as much as you’d like about your company farther down the page. They can elect to read it or not. Nonetheless, the farther down the reader scrolls, the more advertising and marketing information he or she will have absorbed.

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I thought this was an interesting chart. I was surprised to see the iphone to be gaining in this area.

With the addition of email client reports for all our customers, we took a step back and analyzed 6 months of data covering more than 250 million opens. The result – a birds eye view of email client popularity and usage trends over time.

Below is the email client market share as of March 2009. These numbers are not exclusive – some people used more than one email client during the month, and so that will register a vote for each client used.