[Hidden-tech] Fwd: Worcester business journal article

[A - Z International]

>Hey guys!!

We got some great credibility.

She's planning a series, so hoping you'll get some PR from this still.

best,

AZ



>>Business Expo speakers examine both ends of the Information Age 
>><http://wbjournal.com/j/index2.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=688&pop=1&page=0&Itemid=128>
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>>Written by Christina Oneill
>>Sunday, 29 October 2006
>>
>>J.D. Power recalled the time in 1968 when he had to wheedle his way 
>>in to Toyota's U.S. offices to propose market research to its 
>>forklift truck division. Addressing a capacity lunch crowd of about 
>>250 at the October 19 Business Expo, he described how, on a 
>>two-week deadline, he produced his work with hand-drawn charts and 
>>typed the text on an IBM Selectric. Weeks later, Toyota offered him 
>>a work visa to go to Japan and do work for the parent company. Five 
>>years later, his report on early O-ring failure in Mazda autos 
>>brought him a call from The Wall Street Journal, which gave him 
>>hours to confirm his findings before press deadline. He sent his 
>>response via Telex, and his company, J.D. Power & Associates, was 
>>on its way to becoming the market leader in a new business sector 
>>called customer-satisfaction evaluation.
>>
>>By the time he sold the company to McGraw Hill in April 2005, 
>>clients were paying the company up to $300,000 for the right to use 
>>its name in their advertising. Now, information is worth real money.
>>
>>In a presentation room upstairs, Amy Zuckerman laid out a road map 
>>for how the next new wave of the information economy may develop. 
>>She is principal of A-Z International Associates in Amherst and a 
>>founder of Hidden-Tech, a five-year-old association that supports 
>>home-based technology entrepreneurs. "Small does not mean 
>>impotent," she told an audience of about 45 people, many of whom 
>>also work from home. But they're entrepreneurs rather than 
>>freelancers. "Most of us want to maximize our income, while 
>>freelancers are looking for the next project," she said. The 
>>connectivity among Hidden-Tech members: They're usually not 
>>incorporated - and, therefore, often go uncounted - and they use 
>>technology to drive their businesses, no matter what the sector.
>>
>>Zuckerman threw out some figures: Home-based businesses generated 
>>$102 billion in annual revenue in the U.S., according to a study of 
>>2002 data by the Small Business Administration's Office of 
>>Advocacy. About 30 million-plus businesses operate this way, and 
>>their numbers are likely to grow as more baby-boomers retire from 
>>traditional employment but want to or need to remain economically 
>>engaged. "Hidden tech is the wave of the future," she says. "The 
>>economy is going underground."
>>
>>Participating audience members at her Business Expo presentation 
>>work at a wide variety of disciplines, some of them mainstream, 
>>such as online realty services, to specialty niches such as Global 
>>Information Services mapping, voice-overs for commercial clients, 
>>and helping people produce books or movies.
>>
>>Yes, but will the market for these home-based entrepreneurs become 
>>saturated? Zuckerman says there's no chance of that. The increasing 
>>user-friendliness of technology is enabling more and more people to 
>>take their businesses online and out of the mainstream, the 
>>audience members concurred.
>>
>>One thing hasn't changed - the need to market one's business and to 
>>stay connected to customers. Zuckerman, a contributing writer to 
>>numerous information outlets, works hard at getting her message out 
>>and making connections. Power made the somewhat the same 
>>observation about using information technology to connect with 
>>customers. "The possibilities are tremendous," he said. "Those 
>>manufacturing and service companies that understand what's going on 
>>will be the most successful."
>>
>>
>>
>>Christina P. O'Neill can be reached at 
>><mailto:coneill at wbjournal.com>coneill at wbjournal.comThis email 
>>address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript 
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>>