Citation
(2007), "Whats on the web", Strategic Direction, Vol. 23 No. 9. https://doi.org/10.1108/sd.2007.05623iag.001
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2007, Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Whats on the web
Fact filled and aimed at small to medium businesses, this site is full of information and news. Strategies for business growth and advice regarding financial matters are key features in addition to information about technology, entrepreneurial skills and business planning. The site is easy to navigate and manages to fit in the substantial amount it has to offer without appearing too overcrowded. The main business departments of the site are finance, marketing, staff and premises. There is a good forum where people can hold discussions and there is a book review and purchase section as well. One does have a bit of a “bugbear” about the site though; when one first enters far too many pop-up advertisements appear – we counted five. This seemed rather excessive and really quite irritating. However, either turn on your pop up blocker or simply ignore them – the content of the site makes up for the slight annoyance.
Not just for geeks
“Driving business through technology” is the company’s slogan and, as one would expect, the site has a definite technological perspective. The majority of the website is concerned with reviews and news regarding the ways in which new technologies can enhance or hinder business practices. At least some of these stories and reports should certainly pique the reader’s interest; plenty of them deal with commonplace, everyday technologies and the effect they have. There is also a fairly interesting “readers comments” section on the site which could be worth taking a look at, along with several relevant recent white papers. A video section is provided, adding a multi-media dimension which one feels is a good touch on a site devoted to technology issues. Overall this site gives plenty of information and news about a subject that the business community needs to keep close tabs on.
All good stuff
A site with a good visual impact, the first impression one gets is that of a magazine/newspaper image. The content of the site is comprehensive too, with a good balance of reports, comments and analysis, and regular features such as a “political notebook” and a “media file”. This site offers articles that are, in the main, written in a breezy fashion although the content is still solid. In depth pieces on global business trends seem remarkably comprehensive. A touch we particularly liked were the satirical cartoons, these certainly enhance the overall tone of the site. Although this site is clearly geared for use within the business sector, there are also articles on lifestyle and cultural issues such as property and art. Covering many business sectors from aerospace to retail this site is definitely worth a look at for up to date press releases and articles.
No need for the hype
Apparently this is the “financial website of the year” (the award was from the “prestigious Headlinemoney Awards at a gala evening in London” according to the site itself). Pinches of salt aside, this is actually a very good, readable site. The articles are very informative; giving useful information regarding various, especially legal, issues that many people may be unaware of. At the end of each article there is also a section for the reader to review it. Although this site is primarily targeted at small businesses, much of the content is equally applicable to larger businesses, as well as individuals. The site provides a business calculator, topical polls and financial quizzes to help one gauge the state of their finances and financial knowledge. The website comes from the publishers of several newspapers and as such has a certain newspaper quality to it. Overall it is very informative and packed with interesting features and reports.
Viva el website
The site for Business News Americas this is a great website for anyone with business interests in Latin America; it is available for viewing in both English and Spanish. An abundance of generic articles and reports are provided on the homepage, along with write-ups from their research center and a listing of various conferences. Information regarding a range of mostly industrial sectors is covered by Business News Americas and under each of these sectors a variety of today’s news articles are listed. The articles are also arranged for viewing by region as well as by sector. In addition each page contains a featured Q&A relating to current issues and graphs charting changes in each of the various Latin American countries currencies are an interesting feature. This site is particularly good as it provides both fairly generic, and also region and sector specific information.
And finally
Scheduled to give the keynote address at an important convention, the CEO asked one of his employees in the publicity department to write a punchy, twenty-minute speech for him. After the big event, the CEO returned and he was furious. “What’s the idea of writing an hour long speech for me?” he bellowed. “Half the audience got up and walked out before I was finished!” “Well, I’m sorry sir,” the employee replied. “I timed it at exactly twenty minutes – and I’m sure I gave you the two extra copies you requested.”
Contact us
For a particularly interesting and useful site you could always try the Emerald one! And if you have any favorite (or otherwise) sites that you would like us to review on these pages, please drop us an e-mail and we will submit them to our reviewers’ usual rigorous analysis.