Masonry Magazine December 1997 Page. 31
Top World Wide Web Business Sites
By: Carol Brzozowski-Gardner
How in the world can you surf the Internet without drowning? The choices can be overwhelming depending on the search tools you have, you may encounter hundreds of thousands of postings for business-related topics.
We've sifted through a great deal of the Internet business postings and have come up with a list though not exhaustive of some of the Internet World Wide Web sites with information your business may find useful. Our thanks go to Dr. Jill Ellsworth, an Internet marketing research expert and consultant, for providing us with information on some of her top picks to include in this list.
Universities and government agencies can be rich resources of information for businesses. Almost every major university has created its own Web site, gathering information on a myriad of topics, including business.
One of the most comprehensive we found was that of the Villanova Center for Information, Law and Policy, which presents the Federal Web Locator. The Web site presents access to many federal agencies that are of use to businesses, including the Security and Exchange Commission, the U.S. Department of Labor (which carries OSHA statistics), the American Arbitration Association, the Department of Commerce and the Small Business Administration.
Access: http://www.law.vill.edu/fedagency/fedwebloc.html
With information on business everywhere, from home to Toyko, there is the comprehensive site maintained by Washington & Lee University. Dr. Ellsworth describes this site as having "tons" of information.
Access: http://honor.uc.wlu.edu:1020/%20%20%23hf/cl
Another excellent source of business information has been compiled by the University of Miami, which puts out "Business Resources on the Internet", covering dozens of topics of interest.
Access: http://www.library.miami.edu/web/bus.html
The Small Business Administration has a World Wide Web page offering information on business development, financial assistance, government contracting and answers to the most frequently-asked business questions.
Access: http://www.sbaonline.sba.gov
Each search tool will produce different results in search efforts; one of the most impressive search tools for business purposes is Yahoo.
The business section on Yahoo is a one-stop shopping center carrying everything from a listing of business schools to a selection of resources on small business information, marketing and 29 other business-related issues. The small business information section alone has 92 selections.
Access: www.yahoo.com
A number of individuals or organizations maintain Web pages that contain useful information for businesses. Some of them include some subtle advertising, but since they are providing a service as well, this is acceptable. Anyway, you would want to do the same thing with your own Web page if you created one, or as a business, it wouldn't make sense otherwise to pay for and maintain such a page.
Some of the best ones we've found:
Dun & Bradstreet Information Services provides tips on planning, marketing, business strategies, business trends, and customer assistance. Additionally, one can search millions of U.S. companies at no charge.
Access: http://www.dbisna.com/
The MCI Small Business Center's page includes information on business financing, finding good employees, professional services and information, governmental agencies, news and information services and MCI small business solutions.
Access: http://www.mci.com/SmallBiz/index.html
Thomas Ho's Page. This unique page presents electronic commerce examples (such as electronic "store-fronts", financial and professional services), innovative solutions to common problems and information resources. An interesting read is the "blacklist of Internet advertisers" which is good to check out to see how your business should not use the Internet...in Internet parlance, this is known as 'netiquette. This is one list you don't want to end up on.
Access: http://www.engr.iupui.edu/~ho/interests/comm-menu.html
Open Market's Commercial Sites Index. This is a directory of commercial services, products and information on the Internet, with free listings of businesses. This is one list you do want to end up on.
Access: http://www.directory.net/
The Advertising Law Site. If you're not completely sure about the legal aspects advertising, this comprehensive site, maintained by Lewis Rose, an advertising and marketing law partner with the Washington D.C. law firm of Arent, Fox, Kintner, Plotkin & Kahn, will steer you in the right direction. Links are provided to advertising, marketing and consumer law sites, there are seven sections dealing with United States advertising law and you can even join a discussion group on the topic.
Access: http://www.webcom/-lewrose/home.html