Business IT Online
I was recommended this service by a colleague who i met in London last week, he has a virtual development business and utilises students around the globe, one thing that keeps them and his business together is Business IT Online - and its FREE!
Business IT Online, a free webware application which provides contact management, calendars, invoicing, document and cashflow management for the small business user and it has just signed its 10,000 user.
Founded by a group of people who used to work for Accenture. While they were implementing enterprise applications like SAP and I2, they found they were regularly asked to develop lightweight or interim applications for their customers based on things like Excel. They could see there was a market for straightforward business applications, designed for the small business user, but with a “keep it simple” approach, delivered across the web.
They left Accenture and started Business IT Online. The product entered a beta phase in September 2005, and went fully live in April 2006. It’s taken them a little over a year to pass 10,000 sign ups. Their active users are in the thousands. Their free service is supported by advertising
The service has a straightforward sign up process. The basic system allows you to create and track contacts, a calendar and tasks for two users. The premium service allows you 5 or more users, and adds, amongst other things, contact history and pipeline management to the system. They use the Plaxowidget to import contacts, and that means you can transfer your contacts from Outlook, Outlook Express, Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, AOL, and of course Plaxo. You can create simple invoices and credit notes, and the premium upgrade adds management facilities and document collaboration. The Cashlow module offers a simple way for a business to track sales, purchases and expenses, so they can keep a running total of their cash position.
The premium option is charged at £120 for 6 months, and you can add more users beyond that. You can also network with other members and promote your business within the members community. Give it a go! Go virtual!