Award-Winning Site Shares Fifteen Free, Useful Services and Applications Perfect for Small to Medium Businesses (SMBs)

SAN FRANCISCO--Today, PC World, winner of the 2007 Maggie Awards for Best Computer Magazine and Best Web Site, revealed the “15 Best Free Services and Software for Business” in an article available now at http://find.pcworld.com/57799. The list includes detailed descriptions of 15 free business-related sites and services for business managers looking for alternatives to pricey applications. The Web sites range in focus from customer relationship management (CRM) to e-commerce. All you need to take advantage of these free services is Internet access and a Web browser; some services require downloading and installing software. Many offer upgraded capabilities and additional features for a fee.

Below is a complete list of all 15 free business services and software:

Customer Relationship Management (CRM):

• Highrise helps effectively maintain closer relationships with customers by organizing contacts and activities.
• FreeCRM.com offers a sophisticated online CRM service that allows business managers to determine if sales performance is on track compared to budget.

Web and E-mail Hosting:

• Microsoft Office Live Basics allows small businesses to establish an online presence by providing a domain name and capacity for managing a Web site as well as over two dozen e-mail accounts.

Secure E-mail:

• Comodo provides a digital ID for companies seeking a higher level of privacy and security when sending e-mails.

Small Business Accounting:

• Microsoft Office Accounting Express 2007 is a basic accounting program that helps businesses transition from manual to automated electronic bookkeeping.
• TurboCash is an open-source business accounting application that comes with a source code.

E-Commerce Web Site Analytics:

• HitTail Basic collects information about search phrases used by your site’s visitors for sites with up to 100,000 visitors per month.

E-Commerce Shopping Cart:

• AgoraCart organizes and displays products to buyers and accumulates items in order, keeping track of multiple products for the shopper until they’re ready to checkout.

Mailing List Management:

• Mailman is a great application for companies doing mass e-newsletters and/or e-mail blasts by offloading the processing from a PC to a server.
• PoMMO (Post-Modern Mailing Management) is an open-source mailing list manager with an attractive, easy-to-use interface offering personalization capabilities.

Business Plan Workshop:

• CIT Small Business Lending Corporation offers a handy multimedia tutorial explaining how to develop a business plan and also includes a handy glossary of financial terms.

Business Planning:

• Planware provides sophisticated Excel templates for financial projections and cash flow planning.

Business Management Courses:

• Small Business Administration (SBA) Free Online Courses offers links to over 40 free, business-related classes ranging from finance to marketing and e-commerce.

Financial Markets:

• ADVFN.com helps you track financial market price changes and business news in real-time. It also offers free streaming stock quotes and a Monitor service that allows you to look at the prices of stocks, bonds, financial market indices, foreign currencies, and more.

Project Management:

• Basecamp is a project management solution that helps geographically dispersed teams stay informed by logging into the project site, subscribing to the RSS feed, or by email. It also has a forum for posting messages and to-do lists.

PCWorld.com also provides another useful business tool with the recently launched Tech@Business channel (http://find.pcworld.com/57800), providing Solutions for Productivity for the SMB audience.

About PC World:

PC World Communications, Inc. is the publisher of PC World, PCWorld.com, and home of the PC World Test Center. The winner of the 2007 Maggie Award for Best Computer Magazine/Consumer, PC World has a readership of 4 million total purchase influencers (IntelliQuest CIMS, Spring 2007: Total unduplicated, combined Average Issue Audience: Business, Home, and Dual Studies). With an average of over 6.7 million unique visitors per month (HBX, December 2006 – May 2007), PCWorld.com, winner of the 2007 Maggie Award for Best Website, is a leading online resource for technology product buyers and users.

About International Data Group (IDG)

International Data Group (IDG) is the world's leading technology media, events, and research company. IDG’s online network includes more than 450 websites spanning business technology, consumer technology, digital entertainment and video games worldwide. IDG publishes more than 300 magazines and newspapers in 85 countries including CIO, CSO, Computerworld, GamePro, InfoWorld, Macworld, Network World, and PC World. IDG’s lead-generation service, IDG Connect, matches technology companies with an audience of engaged, high-quality IT professionals, influencers, and decision makers.

IDG is a leading producer of more than 750 technology-related events including Macworld Conference & Expo, LinuxWorld Conference & Expo, Entertainment for All Expo (E for All), DEMO, and IDC Directions. IDC, a subsidiary of IDG, is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events. Over 900 IDC analysts in more than 90 countries provide global, regional, and local expertise on technology and industry opportunities and trends.

Additional information about IDG, a privately held company, is available at http://www.idg.com.