35 Essential Social Media & Tech Resources for Small Businesses

Erica Swallow @Mashable

As this year begins to wrap up and businesses start preparing big plans for 2011, we expect social media and technology innovations to be a bigger part of small business digital budgets. To spark a bit of creativity and help get that process rolling, we’ve gathered 35 of our most useful small business posts from the past few months to make sure businesses are in the digital know.

Each week we put together a roundup of essential social media resources that you may have missed that week — you can check those out here. But this week we decided to take it a step further and provide you with another megalist of just our top small business resources from the past few months, including social media, tech, marketing & advertising, dev & design and mobile articles written especially for our small business crowd.

Of course, if you’re still hungry for more business resources, you can follow Mashable’sMashable business channel on TwitterTwitter and become a fan on FacebookFacebook. Happy reading!

Social Media

• 5 Big Social Media Questions From Small Business Owners
  From group buying and location-based marketing to SEO and blogging, here are five fresh questions that small business owners have on their minds.
• How SMBs Can Start Using Facebook Places Now
  Here are a few pointers for how SMBs can leverage Facebook Places and other marketing tools starting today.
• Should You Search Social Media Sites for Job Candidate Information?
  Here are some pointers from recruiting and legal experts about when it is and is not appropriate to search social sites for job candidates.
• 5 New Ways Small Business Can Offer Location-Based Deals
  Small businesses can leverage verified checkins, barcode scanning, group buying initiatives, activity-based rewards, and opt-in lists for location-based deals.
• HOW TO: Respond When Social Media Attacks Your Brand
  Here are three examples of companies that received negative attention on social media and how you can learn from their mistakes or successes.
• 12 Clever Social Media-Friendly Business Cards
  While virtual business cards are becoming a viable alternative to paper cards, there is still a huge demand for traditional business cards. Here are 12 biz cards that integrate social media.
• HOW TO: Use Social Media for Lead Generation
  Being that social media is a great place to attract new customers, we put together a quick guide on how to use social media for lead generation.
• Why Small Businesses Shouldn’t Take Social Media for Granted
  When done right, social media can be a valuable source for customer acquisition, retention and satisfaction. Here a few reasons to help drive the value home.

Tech

• Are Groupon Stores and Do-It-Yourself Deals Worth the Risk?
  Groupon is rolling out a self-serve product called Groupon Stores that allows merchants to set up virtual storefronts and manage their own deals through the group buying site.
• How Online Private Sales Work and How Businesses Can Get Involved
  A look at the ins and outs of online private sales and how businesses can benefit from getting involved.
• 12 Video Tutorials for Improving Product Photos
  If your company sells items online, product photographs can be a key factor in how well they sell. These 12 tutorials will help improve your presentation.
• HOW TO: Connect With Other Entrepreneurs Online
  The best way to learn how to run a business is to run a business. But the second-best way is to ask someone else who runs a business. Check out these sites for advice.
• 5 Tips for Utilizing Skype for Business
  We could write a book-length guide on using SkypeSkype, but here are just five of our favorite tips for getting the most out of Skype for small business.
• HOW TO: Run Your Business Online With $10 and a Google Account
  Follow these steps and you’ll be on your way to a customizable and scalable business infrastructure that lives where your employees do: in the cloud.

Marketing & Advertising

• HOW TO: Run Location-Based Google Ads
  Learn how to use Google Boost, a new location-based ad product for local businesses.
• HOW TO: Earn Some Inexpensive Online Exposure for Your Small Business
  Looking for inexpensive PR? We spoke to some PR pros to find out how to tap into the online media and get your biz a little exposure without breaking the bank.
• HOW TO: Manage Your Presence on Google Maps
  Many of the features that you might normally associate with YelpYelp are actually included in whatGoogleGoogle calls Place Pages. Learn how to manage your Google MapsGoogle Maps presence.
• 4 Tips for Writing SEO-Friendly Blog Posts
  Search rank can be a powerful way to drive readers and customers to your site. Check out this advice on how to make your business blog more Google-friendly.
• 15 Excellent Corporate Blogs to Learn From
  Although the act of blogging can be quite simple, forethought and planning must first go into the creation of a corporate blog in order to keep the processes running smoothly.
• 10 Tips for Corporate Blogging
  There is a laundry list of issues that need to be addressed when it comes to improving corporate blogs, but here we’ve narrowed it down to 10 tips that companies should work on.

Dev & Design

• 10 Free Drupal Themes for Small Business
  DrupalDrupal, an open source CMS, is a wonderful option for businesses needing a powerful website without the typical costs of having one made from scratch. Check out these free themes.
• 5 Beautiful Tumblr Themes for Small Businesses
  There are hundreds of great themes that you can use with TumblrTumblr to give your blog its own unique look. Here are five clean and professional faves for small business users.
• 10 Free WordPress Themes for Small Businesses
  Need a professional-looking WordPressWordPress theme to complement your business website or blog? Here are 10 great free options.
• HOW TO: Hire a Designer or Developer
  Here are four tips that will help you hire the best tech creatives and ensure you’re getting what you paid for.
• HOW TO: Communicate Needs & Expectations to Web Designers
  Hiring a designer is simple. But what you get from that designer depends on how well you communicate what you want, need, and expect. That part’s not so easy.
• HOW TO: Avoid Being a Disaster Client
  We spoke with a few designers to find out about their worst client experiences and what could be learned from them.
• 5 Lightweight CMS Alternatives for Small Businesses
  These five lightweight alternatives might not have as many options and features as a traditional CMS, but they are built with an emphasis on making web pages easy to create and update.
• 5 Small Biz Web Design Trends to Watch
  Here are five current design trends that most small businesses can tap into for great effect.

Mobile

• 13 Branded Mobile Apps That Got It Right
  Branded apps can be a great way to market your company while providing utility to users. Take a lesson from these 13 mobile marketing success stories.
• 9 iPhone Apps for Managing the Recruiting Process
  Instead of creating new processes or downloading a bunch of new apps, here are some iPhone apps you might already have that can help you manage the recruiting process.
• HOW TO: Build an App for Your Small Business
  Small to medium-sized businesses looking to build a Facebook, mobile or web app can choose to employ online DIY tools, freelancers, agencies or in-house devs. Learn more about the options.
• HOW TO: Accept Credit Card Payments on Mobile Devices
  Learn how to set up mobile payments with Square, Intuit GoPaymentIntuit GoPayment and Verifone’s PAYware Mobile.
• Why Small Businesses Should Care About Mobile Payments
  Studies show that mobile transactions are increasing exponentially. Will your business be ready when this trend hits the mainstream?
• HOW TO: Use QR Codes for Small Business Marketing
  If you’re unfamiliar with the business potential of QR codes, use this post as a crash course in how to get started.
• 5 Useful iPhone Apps for Business Networking
  Five useful iPhone apps that will help you become a better business networker.