What Company is Offering:
CallDigits has just launched a new service called Ring-To-Number, which is a tool that lets you offer tool free ways for people to call you, without you giving out your real phone number.
What Its Purpose:
This product is being promoted as a way to protect your identity from people online, but this can be used for off line purposes as well. The biggest difference between Ring-To-Number and similar call-me tools like Jajah and Jaxtr is that this isn’t a web-based service that requires callers to use VoIP in order to contact you.
How It Works:
There are two different types of accounts you can get with Ring-To-Number: the free account provides you with a non-local number that people can call, along with the necessary shortcode to get in touch with you directly. The paid account gives you a local number with no required shortcode. This will cost you about $5.00 per month. These calls can be directed to a landline, a mobile phone, or a VoIP service of your choice. There are also widgets that display your Ring-To-Number assigned number that will also let site visitors see if you’re available to take call.
More at:http://www.ringtonumber.com/
Via-Mash
Monday, October 8, 2007
Price comparison engine "Tjoos"
When you take a closer look at price comparison sites you will soon notice that most sites only compare stores that have affiliate programs. These stores pay a commision to referring sites. In essence you get to choose from several store advertisements, we call this 'Ad comparison shopping'. At Tjoos we believe the user should be provided with the largest possible range of store options. For contact lenses we already list over 50 stores, where others only list a handful.
Tjoos is to be pronounced as choose, as in, were are helping the consumer make a wiser and more educated choice. Currently the only thing that you can compare on Tjoos.com right now is the contact lenses, the same expirement that the project started with.
More at:http://www.tjoos.com/
Tjoos is to be pronounced as choose, as in, were are helping the consumer make a wiser and more educated choice. Currently the only thing that you can compare on Tjoos.com right now is the contact lenses, the same expirement that the project started with.
More at:http://www.tjoos.com/
Is Google's Rival Coming?
It's the nightmare of any Silicon Valley CEO: The thought that a smart kid in a messy garage in Silicon Valley is right now developing technology that will make his company's products obsolete.
So should Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin be losing sleep about a tiny German company called Proximic?
While the notion may at first seem ridiculous, given Google's strengths and cash hoard, computer scientists at some of Silicon Valley's biggest Internet companies have been struck by the firm's promising new search technology.
Although in this case, contrary to stereotype, the extremely powerful software code was actually developed by a 54-year-old German mathematician working in a spick-and-span office near the University of Munich.
Thomas Nitsche's program matches Web pages with relevant advertising. That's what Google's AdSense network also does. But Nitsche and his 33-year-old partner, Philipp Pieper, chief executive of Proximic, believe they do it better. People who have played with their program say that seems to be true.
While Google looks at the words on a Web page, Proximic looks for patterns of characters. That means Proximic's approach is completely language-independent, so it works as well with German and Chinese as it does with English.
In theory, this makes Proximic ideal for the random spew of user-generated content posted daily on blogs and social-networking sites around the Web, material that often gets the the better of Google's algorithms.
"If they can do this, it could be a breakthrough," said Sue Feldman, an analyst with IDC.
A veteran of an Internet giant who recently took a close look at Proximic's technology and who asked to remain anonymous said it has the potential of being a game changer, but that Nitsche and Pieper face the challenge of proving that a dramatically different approach is better than existing methods.
Currently, Proximic is showing off its technology via a Firefox plug-in available at www.proximic.com. The plug-in produces a sidebar that matches the content of a Web page with additional articles on the Internet or other information, such as an ad.
It is currently being used by the Independent, a daily newspaper published in the United Kingdom, and the Nature Publishing Group, which is owned by one of Proximic's venture backers.
Proximic raised $4.5 million in its first round of founding from Wellington Partners, a European venture capital firm, and Holtzbrinck, which owns Nature through Macmillan.
Ian Mulvany, a product manager for Connotea.org., Nature's social-bookmarking service, said he has tested Proximic and Google AdSense and that Proximic had so far come out ahead. "The matching seems to be of a very high quality," he said.
So should Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin be losing sleep about a tiny German company called Proximic?
While the notion may at first seem ridiculous, given Google's strengths and cash hoard, computer scientists at some of Silicon Valley's biggest Internet companies have been struck by the firm's promising new search technology.
Although in this case, contrary to stereotype, the extremely powerful software code was actually developed by a 54-year-old German mathematician working in a spick-and-span office near the University of Munich.
Thomas Nitsche's program matches Web pages with relevant advertising. That's what Google's AdSense network also does. But Nitsche and his 33-year-old partner, Philipp Pieper, chief executive of Proximic, believe they do it better. People who have played with their program say that seems to be true.
While Google looks at the words on a Web page, Proximic looks for patterns of characters. That means Proximic's approach is completely language-independent, so it works as well with German and Chinese as it does with English.
In theory, this makes Proximic ideal for the random spew of user-generated content posted daily on blogs and social-networking sites around the Web, material that often gets the the better of Google's algorithms.
"If they can do this, it could be a breakthrough," said Sue Feldman, an analyst with IDC.
A veteran of an Internet giant who recently took a close look at Proximic's technology and who asked to remain anonymous said it has the potential of being a game changer, but that Nitsche and Pieper face the challenge of proving that a dramatically different approach is better than existing methods.
Currently, Proximic is showing off its technology via a Firefox plug-in available at www.proximic.com. The plug-in produces a sidebar that matches the content of a Web page with additional articles on the Internet or other information, such as an ad.
It is currently being used by the Independent, a daily newspaper published in the United Kingdom, and the Nature Publishing Group, which is owned by one of Proximic's venture backers.
Proximic raised $4.5 million in its first round of founding from Wellington Partners, a European venture capital firm, and Holtzbrinck, which owns Nature through Macmillan.
Ian Mulvany, a product manager for Connotea.org., Nature's social-bookmarking service, said he has tested Proximic and Google AdSense and that Proximic had so far come out ahead. "The matching seems to be of a very high quality," he said.
TextPayMe
What is TextPayMe?
Use TextPayMe to Send and Receive Money with your Phone via Text Messaging.
How It Works:
With TextPayMe, you can send a payment to anybody, anytime, and anywhere just by using your mobile phone.
To pay with your mobile phone, simply send a text message to the short code 262966 with the following command:
Pay
WhatPurpose It have:
Use TextPayMe to
Send and receive money with your phone
Split your restaurant bills
Purchase items from Amazon.com
More at:https://textpayme.amazon.com/
Use TextPayMe to Send and Receive Money with your Phone via Text Messaging.
How It Works:
With TextPayMe, you can send a payment to anybody, anytime, and anywhere just by using your mobile phone.
To pay with your mobile phone, simply send a text message to the short code 262966 with the following command:
Pay
WhatPurpose It have:
Use TextPayMe to
Send and receive money with your phone
Split your restaurant bills
Purchase items from Amazon.com
More at:https://textpayme.amazon.com/
Deadline for entries for Entrepreneur of the Year Award is October 27
The Ernst & Young Middle East Entrepreneur of the Year Award is currently accepting nominations from entrepreneurs in the region, the deadline for which is October 27.
To enter the awards programme either download the application form from www.ey.com/me/eoy or contact local Ernst & Young office for more information.
To be eligible to enter, entrepreneurs must be an owner/manager who is primarily responsible for the recent performance of a privately held business that is at least two years old or be a founder of a listed company, who is still active in senior management or is still a 51 per cent owner.
Self-nominations are encouraged and there is no fee to enter.
‘The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year programme honours exactly what its name implies — the entrepreneur. Being a recipient of this prestigious business award means that you are at the top of your game,” said Ahmed Al Aiban, chairman, Ernst & Young, Middle East.
“Celebrating entrepre-neurs and the business they build and grow has always been a priority for Ernst & Young. This has been particularly evident for the past two decades in other regions through the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year programme and we see no reason why the Middle East business leaders shouldn’t benefit from the same recognition as the rest of the world’s entrepreneurs.”
To enter the awards programme either download the application form from www.ey.com/me/eoy or contact local Ernst & Young office for more information.
To be eligible to enter, entrepreneurs must be an owner/manager who is primarily responsible for the recent performance of a privately held business that is at least two years old or be a founder of a listed company, who is still active in senior management or is still a 51 per cent owner.
Self-nominations are encouraged and there is no fee to enter.
‘The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year programme honours exactly what its name implies — the entrepreneur. Being a recipient of this prestigious business award means that you are at the top of your game,” said Ahmed Al Aiban, chairman, Ernst & Young, Middle East.
“Celebrating entrepre-neurs and the business they build and grow has always been a priority for Ernst & Young. This has been particularly evident for the past two decades in other regions through the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year programme and we see no reason why the Middle East business leaders shouldn’t benefit from the same recognition as the rest of the world’s entrepreneurs.”
MSNBC Acquired Newsvine Inc
MSNBC Interactive News LLC said it acquired Newsvine Inc., a small Seattle startup that lets visitors read and comment on news stories from mainstream media outlets.
MSNBC, which is jointly owned by Microsoft Corp. and NBC Universal, did not disclose financial terms of the deal late Sunday. NBC Universal is a joint venture of General Electric Co. and Vivendi SA.
Newsvine launched in 2006 and employs six people. Mike Davidson, its co-founder and chief executive officer, said about a million people come to the site each month to read articles and submit their own articles and commentary.
Charlie Tillinghast, president of MSNBC Interactive News, said Newsvine will remain a stand-alone site. MSNBC.com will provide technology resources to the startup and add links to drive more visitors to Newsvine. MSNBC.com gets about 29 million unique visitors a month, he said.
MSNBC also plans to incorporate some of Newsvine's social and community aspects into MSNBC.com, Tillinghast said.
Newsvine will stay in its Seattle offices. Davidson will retain his CEO title and report to Tillinghast.
On the Net:
Newsvine Inc.: http://www.newsvine.com
MSNBC: http://www.msnbc.com
MSNBC, which is jointly owned by Microsoft Corp. and NBC Universal, did not disclose financial terms of the deal late Sunday. NBC Universal is a joint venture of General Electric Co. and Vivendi SA.
Newsvine launched in 2006 and employs six people. Mike Davidson, its co-founder and chief executive officer, said about a million people come to the site each month to read articles and submit their own articles and commentary.
Charlie Tillinghast, president of MSNBC Interactive News, said Newsvine will remain a stand-alone site. MSNBC.com will provide technology resources to the startup and add links to drive more visitors to Newsvine. MSNBC.com gets about 29 million unique visitors a month, he said.
MSNBC also plans to incorporate some of Newsvine's social and community aspects into MSNBC.com, Tillinghast said.
Newsvine will stay in its Seattle offices. Davidson will retain his CEO title and report to Tillinghast.
On the Net:
Newsvine Inc.: http://www.newsvine.com
MSNBC: http://www.msnbc.com
Underwear Entrepreneurs
An online underwear store for men, women and children, has been launched in New Zealand.
Undiesonline is the brainchild of founder Carmen Whitaker. The site – which officially launches nationwide on October 11 - is already proving a hit with people who don’t have time to go shopping or live some distance from the shops, says Whitaker.
She plans to become the leading online underwear and lingerie seller of men's, women's and children’s underwear throughout New Zealand.
"Overall, our prices are cheaper than in shops and we send out all underwear orders free of charge. We have all the most popular brands like Calvin Klein, Macpherson Man, Books to Wear, Snuggle Bums, Hey Sister, Fayreform, Trinny and Susannah, HOTMilk, Pleasurestate, James and August and Bendon.
"I had a dream of providing underwear online for men and women to take the stress and time out of shopping. I want undiesonline to become a New Zealand icon for women and men’s underwear."
Whitaker lives in Christchurch with her husband and young son, Angus, who has had a liver transplant. As a result the family stayed at a Ronald McDonald House in Auckland - and a percentage of sales from the new website will be given to the charity running the houses.
More at: www.undiesonline.co.nz.
Undiesonline is the brainchild of founder Carmen Whitaker. The site – which officially launches nationwide on October 11 - is already proving a hit with people who don’t have time to go shopping or live some distance from the shops, says Whitaker.
She plans to become the leading online underwear and lingerie seller of men's, women's and children’s underwear throughout New Zealand.
"Overall, our prices are cheaper than in shops and we send out all underwear orders free of charge. We have all the most popular brands like Calvin Klein, Macpherson Man, Books to Wear, Snuggle Bums, Hey Sister, Fayreform, Trinny and Susannah, HOTMilk, Pleasurestate, James and August and Bendon.
"I had a dream of providing underwear online for men and women to take the stress and time out of shopping. I want undiesonline to become a New Zealand icon for women and men’s underwear."
Whitaker lives in Christchurch with her husband and young son, Angus, who has had a liver transplant. As a result the family stayed at a Ronald McDonald House in Auckland - and a percentage of sales from the new website will be given to the charity running the houses.
More at: www.undiesonline.co.nz.
Should We Hire Search Consultant For Our Startup Companies?
As a small-business owner with a Web site, you know that one of the most important things you can do is get your site ranked high on a search-results page at Google, MSN and Yahoo!. But how to achieve that high ranking?
You've learned all about keywords, link building and unique page titles. The question is, how do you do it? And should you go it alone or call in the hired guns?
"The right answer is somewhere in between," says Gord Hotchkiss, CEO and president of Enquiro, a search marketing agency, and the chairman of SEMPO, a nonprofit organization serving the search-engine marketing industry. According to Hotchkiss, outsourcing every aspect of search-engine optimization would mean giving up complete control of your Web site--something most small-business owners would, and should, be unwilling to do. "It needs to be a partnership," he says. "You don't want to lose control."
But Hotchkiss believes that within that partnership, search-engine-optimization consultants can bring some good value to the small-business owner. "Any consultant will have a good understanding of search engines and algorithms," he says. "There is a learning curve that is fairly steep."
What's Your Time Worth?
Indeed, Google's (nasdaq: GOOG - news - people ) continuous changes in its algorithms keep small-business owners like Matt Mavir, managing director of Last Night of Freedom, a 10-employee company that puts together bachelor party weekends, busy with search-engine optimization for nearly a third of his working hours. Little wonder: Search-engine results account for nearly 90% of his business.
Mavir has kept his SEO work in-house since he founded the business eight years ago, but he said that businesses in very competitive fields should take on SEO consultants. "It's a constant battleground," he says. "I constantly have to be on top of this."
Aaron Rubin, founder of S&A Industries, a 23-employee company with six Web sites, also does all his SEO work in-house. He says that he spends about 20% of his work time on SEO, and that search engine rankings are a very important part of his business: "It's how we generate sales." For his part, Rubin doesn't see a benefit to hiring an SEO consultant. "They will change tags, change filters and factors, like page titles and keywords, on the page, and it will help to a small degree," he says. However, "most are not going to make a significant difference to your business."
Danny Sullivan, editor in chief of Search Engline Land and a Web consultant, agrees that small-business owners don't need to hire an SEO consultant--as long as they are willing to do the work on their own. "Many people can and do learn the basics of SEO and do well with just that," he said. "But many people find it easier to find outside help, just as they might want outside help to write press releases or do other types of marketing."
In addition to saving time, consultants also bring a fresh perspective--a valuable resource for small-business owners who can have a hard time viewing their businesses dispassionately. "Consultancies have a good understanding of how people use search," said Hotchkiss. "Small-business owners sometimes have a hard time stepping back and understanding how people do that."
Finding Your SEO Soulmate
If you're convinced you need outside help, choose wisely. Search engines are swarming with ads for SEO deals. "There are a lot of crooked SEO consultants and a lot of popular scams," says Elizabeth Osmeloski, editor of Search Engine Watch.
First, beware guarantees. "If it sounds too good to be true, it is," says Hotchkiss. "We would all love to have guarantees, but no one has that influence over what Google shows as No. 1. A guarantee is a red flag." Over-promises can lead to "black hat" practices--like keyword stuffing and link farming--which can get a site banned from search engines. Once that happens, it's very hard to get back in Google's good graces.
Osmeloski also warns against using any consultant who wants to sell you a service that requires you to download a toolbar. These companies are often getting you a top spot, but your exposure is only limited to Web users with that toolbar.
A final consideration: To be effective, consultants should want to know everything about your business--and that means asking a lot of questions. Says Hotchkiss: "If you are talking to a vendor and if you are spending more time listening than talking, that's a red flag."
Via-Forbes
You've learned all about keywords, link building and unique page titles. The question is, how do you do it? And should you go it alone or call in the hired guns?
"The right answer is somewhere in between," says Gord Hotchkiss, CEO and president of Enquiro, a search marketing agency, and the chairman of SEMPO, a nonprofit organization serving the search-engine marketing industry. According to Hotchkiss, outsourcing every aspect of search-engine optimization would mean giving up complete control of your Web site--something most small-business owners would, and should, be unwilling to do. "It needs to be a partnership," he says. "You don't want to lose control."
But Hotchkiss believes that within that partnership, search-engine-optimization consultants can bring some good value to the small-business owner. "Any consultant will have a good understanding of search engines and algorithms," he says. "There is a learning curve that is fairly steep."
What's Your Time Worth?
Indeed, Google's (nasdaq: GOOG - news - people ) continuous changes in its algorithms keep small-business owners like Matt Mavir, managing director of Last Night of Freedom, a 10-employee company that puts together bachelor party weekends, busy with search-engine optimization for nearly a third of his working hours. Little wonder: Search-engine results account for nearly 90% of his business.
Mavir has kept his SEO work in-house since he founded the business eight years ago, but he said that businesses in very competitive fields should take on SEO consultants. "It's a constant battleground," he says. "I constantly have to be on top of this."
Aaron Rubin, founder of S&A Industries, a 23-employee company with six Web sites, also does all his SEO work in-house. He says that he spends about 20% of his work time on SEO, and that search engine rankings are a very important part of his business: "It's how we generate sales." For his part, Rubin doesn't see a benefit to hiring an SEO consultant. "They will change tags, change filters and factors, like page titles and keywords, on the page, and it will help to a small degree," he says. However, "most are not going to make a significant difference to your business."
Danny Sullivan, editor in chief of Search Engline Land and a Web consultant, agrees that small-business owners don't need to hire an SEO consultant--as long as they are willing to do the work on their own. "Many people can and do learn the basics of SEO and do well with just that," he said. "But many people find it easier to find outside help, just as they might want outside help to write press releases or do other types of marketing."
In addition to saving time, consultants also bring a fresh perspective--a valuable resource for small-business owners who can have a hard time viewing their businesses dispassionately. "Consultancies have a good understanding of how people use search," said Hotchkiss. "Small-business owners sometimes have a hard time stepping back and understanding how people do that."
Finding Your SEO Soulmate
If you're convinced you need outside help, choose wisely. Search engines are swarming with ads for SEO deals. "There are a lot of crooked SEO consultants and a lot of popular scams," says Elizabeth Osmeloski, editor of Search Engine Watch.
First, beware guarantees. "If it sounds too good to be true, it is," says Hotchkiss. "We would all love to have guarantees, but no one has that influence over what Google shows as No. 1. A guarantee is a red flag." Over-promises can lead to "black hat" practices--like keyword stuffing and link farming--which can get a site banned from search engines. Once that happens, it's very hard to get back in Google's good graces.
Osmeloski also warns against using any consultant who wants to sell you a service that requires you to download a toolbar. These companies are often getting you a top spot, but your exposure is only limited to Web users with that toolbar.
A final consideration: To be effective, consultants should want to know everything about your business--and that means asking a lot of questions. Says Hotchkiss: "If you are talking to a vendor and if you are spending more time listening than talking, that's a red flag."
Via-Forbes
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