Kruti Joshi, a journalism student at University of Technology Sydney, spent two days at CeBIT Australia 2013 as a member of the live-tweeting team. On Day 3, she followed the speakers in the Business Trends Theatre and BuddeComm Seminar Theatre as they discussed the impact of technologies on businesses and consumers. This is her post.

James Foxall, president and CEO of TigerPaw Software, kicked off the day by sharing nine tactics that he claims will help strengthen a business’s foundation.

Businesses, he said, need to act upon what their data is telling them.  “Data is great … But, it doesn’t mean anything if you don’t do anything with the data,” he said.

Mr Foxall’s nine points to profitability were:

• Time is money. Keep regular track of your time and, schedule your tasks.
• Implement a recurring revenue model.
• Interact with your customers often. This signals to your clients how important they are to the business and, shows them that you care.
• Implement a Service Level Agreement (SLA). It forms an expectation for all parties and, indemnifies businesses.
• Provide customers with a self-help tool online.
• Use email analytics. Study what works and what doesn’t.
• Manage your opportunities the same way you manage your tickets
• Use real time dashboards.
• Leverage interactions and relationships.

This was followed by a lesson on how to present yourself on social media. Philip Redding, managing director of Endor Group, took to the stage after placing a brown paper bag over his face. He then addressed the audience by saying: “This is what it’s like to meet people online.”

It was a perfect illustration of the anonymous world that exists on line, where people can present themselves in any guise.

When people join social networking websites, especially ones such as LinkedIn, they are presenting as a brand, said Mr Redding.

“Look at me, Look at me! We’re continuously advertising ourselves online … It’s important you represent a true version of yourself,” he said.

“If you read something you like, share it. Join the right conversations that represent you. These things help characterize your brand. Don’t play the ‘I scratch your back, you scratch mine’ game – it’s easily caught out,” said Mr Redding, who ended his presentation with the words:  “Social Media is about people. Not about logos.”

I then headed to the BuddeComm Theatre to hear about the future of mobile broadband. I had some personal interest here as I am considering upgrading my phone.

Paul Budde, a leading telecommunications analyst, covered a range of topics from the shift in power dynamic of mobile service operators to mobile producers, to the future of mobile networks around the world.

The future, he said, is no longer “about technology itself, it’s about the way we react to these technologies.  It’s not just the advances in technology; we have to use these technologies to our advantage [to make the most of these innovations].”

Humans, said Mr Budde, constantly want more and more, and technology serves this need.  “It was personal need to go from Dial-up to Broadband. The same way in five years, people will need more.”

In the future, he said, as mobile data technology advances, the mobile stations that support mobile devices will be brought closer to our homes.

As for me, I think I now know what I’m looking for in a new mobile phone. Thanks CeBITAus!