Ecommerce expert John “ColderIce” Lawson and I recently transitioned our Watching Amazon show/podcast into Pass the Mic.  The new name doesn’t mean we’ve grown tired of, well, watching Amazon, as we still plan to do plenty of that with all the things the company is into.  But by rebranding it as PTM it allows us to broaden the topics and companies we can dive into, and of course TikTok is a great example of that.

In fact, there have been a few recent reports of TikTok potentially following in Amazon’s footsteps by building out their own fulfillment centers and capabilities in order to support the growing digital commerce of creators using their video platform.   And though there haven’t been any formal announcements that this is happening, it got us to thinking if TikTok could really pull this off.  And if they did what would be the potential impact for creators and small retailers trying to reach the billion-plus monthly visitors to the platform.  Or why would TikTok fare better than Shopify who tried to build their fulfillment capabilities only to fail fast.

John and I went round and round on this one, as the thought of the fastest growing video platform taking on such a huge infrastructure project is intriguing. And we probably came away with more questions than answers.

John Lawson of PTM – Fulfillment by TikTok Would be a Positive for Creators Looking to Sell Merch

If you are interested in buying a franchise, you might be surprised to discover that ones like Dunkin', and McDonald's probably aren't the opportunities that potential franchise owners should be looking at. 

In this latest episode of Small Biz in :15, The Franchise King Joel Libava sits down with us in this episode to tell us about the latest franchise trends and what you should look for in a franchise opportunity.

Looking for the Perfect Franchise Opportunity

A little over a year ago I spoke with Bryan Catanzaro of Nvidia about some of the interesting technology they were developing in the areas of graphical AI, voice synthesis and conversational/speech AI.  Bryan shared a vision of the future of what things like machine learning and deep learning could do to impact the way we experience the world around us.  And while some of the things like AI creating things like art and music and human sounding voices get a lot of attention, there are some more practical examples of AI already being used to help create better customer experiences when we need help with a product or service.

With a year going by I was curious to hear how things are progressing in these areas, and I was fortunate to speak via LinkedIn Live with Erik Pounds, Sr. Director of Enterprise Computing and Data Science at Nvidia, around the direction things like conversational and speech AI have moved in since l last spoke with Bryan.

Erik Pounds of Nvidia: Algorithms haven’t understood context of conversations. That is possible now

On this latest episode of Small Biz in :15, host Shawn Hessinger talks with Monique Johnson to discuss the topic of hybrid events, those held both in-person and virtually, for small businesses.

What is a Hybrid Event?

James Clift discusses how to use artificial intelligence to build a small business website in this latest episode of Small Biz in :15.

Using AI to Business a Small Business Website

Rieva Lesonsky joins host Shawn Hessinger of Small Business Trends to discuss the latest retail trends, including how to understand Millennial and Gen Z shopping habits.

Rieva Lesonsky on Understanding Millennials and Gen Z

Are you looking for ways to create the perfect lead magnet to collect more clients and customers? 

In this episode, Annie P. Ruggles Founder of the Non-Sleazy Sales Academy (tongue firmly in cheek on that one) shares tips with us for creating a lead magnet that will help you attract more leads and close more deals. 

Don’t miss this inspirational overview of how to create a lead, magnet, prospects won't be able to resist, and what all it has to do with King Arthur and Merlin, for a fun twist.

Annie P. Ruggles on Creating the Perfect Lead Magnet for Your Small Business

In this episode of Small Biz in :15, Executive Editor Shawn Hessinger talks with Jim Kukral and they discuss ways small business owners can better market their companies, brands, products and services to reach more people.

What is Marketing? Answers for Small Business Owners

We're looking back at 2022 on this final episode of Small Biz in :15 for the year. 

Check out the highlights from business experts who chatted with us in the first 7 months of our show. 

During that time, we learned about some amazing business tips, advice and how you can stay abreast of changing trends. 

We're positive that entrepreneurs and solopreneurs can take away some priceless business gems from the interviews and use them to elevate their small businesses in the year 2023 and beyond.

smallbiztrends

Popular tracks