The Briz Blog

A Marketing Guide

2008-08-25T10:35:47-04:00

Keep up with the changing marketplace and economy!

What does it take to survive and prosper in a difficult, even hostile, marketing environment? Take a clue from nature, where success comes down to survival of the fittest. The most prolific creatures on the planet must be adaptable, rugged, aggressive and attractive to conquer all. Now, more than ever, these essential qualities are the prerequisites for staying ahead in a competitive, or depressed, marketplace. Apply these four survival strategies to your own marketing programs. (read more...)

Kim T. Gordon

Entrepreneur.com

You Spoke - We Listened

2008-07-30T15:05:35-04:00

The Briz Contact Manager

Upload all your favorite contacts
Automatically invite them to connect with you on Briz
Keep your contacts always informed when you share new Briz Buzz!!

What is this?

Well, how do you currently share a quick message with all of your customers? You probably can't, or it's quite hard to do.
You can now load all of your customers, and when you post Buzz, it's directly shared with them

What does it do?

It makes your life simpler
It organizes your contacts
It connects you to more businesses

How does it work?

There are 3 ways you can load your contacts:

Manually input your contacts
Upload a spreadsheet
Existing email address and password -- Briz.com will automatically get all of your contacts and load them into your account. For example, enter your Yahoo email and password and the system will load all of your contacts from Yahoo!

What happens next?

Each time you share new Buzz; your contacts will always be kept in the loop and will receive an email featuring your Buzz.

Where do I find it?

Have a question?

Send us a Briz message or email to: support@briz.com

Former Google Engineers Launch New Search Engine "Cuil"

2008-07-29T09:02:31-04:00

Cuil or Google

120 billion web pages vs. 40 billion webpages

Cuil (pronounced "cool") was founded by former Google employees, Anna Paterson, Russel Power, and Louis Monier, and Tom Patterson who worked for IBM. It claims to have a larger index with more comprehensive and relevant results.

Good idea? Bad idea?

As of now I am not a fan of Cuil and will stick with Google for sure.

Cuil claims to have 80 billion more pages then Google.

I did a simple search for "business" on both Cuil and Google and the results were not what the founders of Cuil claimed, "The Biggest Search Engine." Cuil revealed 799,002,930 results whereas Google revealed 2,910,000,000. So why would I switch from Google to Cuil? So when Ms. Paterson said, "People can say 'If I can't fine what I want on Google, I can find it on Cuil,'" what does she mean?

Winning users

If the 80 million pages that Cuil claims they have over Google really win users over, how long before Google adds to its index?

Plus

What’s the difference between 40 billion and 120 billion pages, you’re not going to look at them all anyway. So, if the first 20 results aren’t completely different, then what’s the difference in the two search engines?

One Column or Three

The result layout is quit different then that of other search engines. Although, you can make an argument it’s new and we aren't adjusted to the multi column format, I find it easier to read down a single column rather then down and across three columns.

Anyway enough bashing, there are some positives and impressive things about Cuil.

Money, money, money

What about the $33 million they raised in total, but only spent $7 million so far. That’s pretty impressive compared to other search engines that have reported to take hundreds of millions to build.

Cuil unlike other search engines won’t collect and store your personal information meaning the address of your computer and your search histories but rather the terms people search for overall.

Many of the Google challengers have failed before, so only time will tell about the future of Cuil.

Learn From Your Customers

2008-07-23T17:15:40-04:00

There is no better way to get feedback about your products and/or services then simply asking those who have already been exposed to your offerings. However, as we all know the business world is divided into two sectors: the offline world and the wired world. Therefore, the approach to receiving feedback varies depending on your businesses presence.

For the offline world, feedback usually is retrieved by time consuming and annoying customer surveys, focus groups, and in some cases interviews. For the wired world customer feedback is much easier for both the customer and business. Not only can the business reach more customers in a cost-effective manner but the customer has the ability to provide feedback at their convenience. Feedback may not always come directly from the customer but rather customer trends and behavioral patterns.

Overall, customer feedback is equally important for both the customer and business. Customer's feel appreciated and satisfied by the changes while businesses increases their customer loyalty and improve their overall business image.

Remember, you can't make everyone happy but an effective customer service system can be the difference between repeat business and a lost customer.

Going On Vacation This Summer?

2008-07-15T08:51:37-04:00

Six Tips for Staying in Touch With Clients While on Vacation

Can’t tear yourself away from work for a vacation this summer? Consider bringing your business with you, says Jeff Zbar, who has spent the past six summers traveling the U.S. with his family, working on the road. (read more)

Briz in the News

2008-07-03T12:23:45-04:00

Click Link To Read About Us: Briz in the News

Visit Live Crunch: Click Here

Briz in the News

2008-07-01T09:37:49-04:00

Click Link To Read About Us: Briz in the News

Check out the SmallBizResource Blog

Need some reading material for the summer?

2008-06-25T09:02:21-04:00

Check out some great business best sellers:

1. The One Minute Entrepreneur

2. The 4-Hour Workweek

3. Debt Cures "They" Don't Want You To Know About

4. Harmonic Wealth

5. The Total Money Makeover

6. Now, Discover our Strengths

7. The New Paradigm For Financial Markets

8. Sales Bible

9. Bad Money

10. The Black Swan

11. Our Iceberg Is Melting

12. Women & Money

13. Predictably Irrational

14. Go Put Your Strengths To Work

15. What Got You Here Won't Get You There

Finding the right bank for your business needs

2008-06-23T10:25:26-04:00

You have a lot of choices when it comes to selecting a bank for your small business. With 23 million small businesses (20 employees or less) in the US, many banks are capitalizing on this growing customer segment by offering more small business services. But you want to make sure you find a bank that suits your needs. What might work for one small business doesn't necessarily mean it will work for yours. The key is to identify just what your small business needs are and to find a bank that fits. (read more)

The Area Code Scam

2008-06-18T12:20:17-04:00

Don't Ever Dial Area Code 809

The Scam:

They get you to call by telling you that it is information about a family member who has been ill or to tell you someone has been arrested, died, or to let you know you what won a wonderful prize, etc.

In each case, you are told to call the 809 area right away. Since there are so many new area codes these days, people unknowingly return these calls.

If you call from the U.S., you will apparently be charged $2425 per-minute.

Most likely you will get a long recorded message. Point of the story is they try to keep you on the phone as long as possible to increase the charges.

Why it Works:

The 809 area code is in fact located in the British Virgin Island (The Bahamas). Therefore, making the charges afterwards a real nightmare because you actually made the call. If you complain, both your local phone company and your long distance carrier will not want to get involved and will most likely tell you that they are simply providing the billing for the foreign company. You will end up dealing with a foreign company in which they will argue that they have nothing wrong.

Tell friends and family about the 809 area code scam.