What’s up guys? There are literally thousands of websites and services out there that help entrepreneurs and small business owners to run their business, promote and market themselves, and control the chaos. However, deciding which ones to use is the problem. Here is a list of some of the best services out there that you need to be using or at least looking at for your small business.

Twitter
Twitter allows you to update your followers with what is going on, what you are doing, and what you want to talk about. Limited to 140 characters, you have the opportunity to reach a wide audience with your messages. Following people and having followers is the key to success on Twitter -  you need to build your audience. The micro-blogging platform is free and super easy to use via the web or text messaging. Join, start following, advertise your business, services, or products and watch your business grow.
Website: http://www.twitter.com
Cost: Free

Facebook
What – you’re not on Facebook? What the hell are you thinking? Start a profile for yourself, start a page for your business, and start adding your friends. Use Facebook as an avenue to connect with customers on a whole different level. You can also find your friends from college, high school, and former workplaces. Interact with your friends and start talking up your business. Refer people to your business’s Facebook page or group and get them to join it. As people start joining, others will see the notice on their feeds that their friends are joining your group – which may entice them to join themselves. This is a great way to grow your audience and potential customer base. The social aspects of Facebook are also great – upload and share pictures, links, stores, and more.
Website: http://www.facebook.com
Cost: Free

FreshBooks
Looking for a good and easy way to invoice your clients, track your time, or track your expenses? Then check out FreshBooks! The free service will allow you to add a few clients and the paid version will allow for more, but basically you can send invoices to your clients through email and share documents with them as well. The service is great for someone like a web designer or developer that needs to share documents and information constantly with their clients.
Website: http://www.freshbooks.com
Cost: Free or $14/month and up

Basecamp
Project management and collaboration can be a tricky thing when you are small and just starting out. When you are working with a lot of other people on a project, it is key to keep everyone on the same page. Basecamp from 37Signals will help you do that! Basecamp will allow you to customize your management area look and feel, share it with your customers or team members, and share all kinds of documents and information. Anything from 37Signals is a helpful tool for your business, so check out their other services as well.
Website: http://www.basecamphq.com/
Cost: 30 day free trial or $25/month and up

SmartyPig
If you are looking to save up some of your businesses income and hold on to it for a big purchase of new equipment or other needs for your business, then you need to look in to SmartyPig. SmartyPig allows you to set up savings goals and have money deposited into a savings account direct from your bank account each month. I use them for mostly personal savings goals, but business savings goals are definitely a great idea. The people at SmartyPig are awesome and offer great support, so I strongly recommend them – the best part? It’s free!
Website: http://www.smartypig.com
Cost: Free

LinkedIn
If you don’t like Facebook because you feel there is too much info free for searching and not enough privacy, check out the more professional social network, LinkedIn. LinkedIn has been around for a good while, maybe even longer than Facebook? LinkedIn allows you to connect with collegaues, classmates, and other professionals in similar industries…or just random people like Facebook. However, LinkedIn is focused more on the professional side of social networking and growing your connections. You can have people endorse you to help you grow your presence and you don’t have to really worry about any crazy party pictures of you doing a keg stand showing up on your managers Facebook feed (wouldn’t that suck?).
Website: http://www.linkedin.com
Cost: Free

Google Analytics
I could not create a list of useful websites without having at least one Google product on it. Analytics is an awesome visitor tracking program that Google has developed. All you need to do is slap a few lines of code on your site and let it be. Analytics will automatically start tracking your sites visitors – telling you where they are coming from, how long they are staying, what pages they are visiting, and much much more. The best part? Like most things from Google, it is free! There is no reason that you should not be using the program to track your site traffic and evaluate what is working for you.
Website: http://www.google.com/analytics
Cost: Free

YouTube
Social media is a huge part of the web 2.0 revolution and is attracting many more people and businesses to the internet. One way to take advantage of social media and viral marketing is through uploading videos that you create to free video sharing websites such as YouTube. YouTube allows you to upload any video you make (as long as it is under its file size requirements) and share it with your friends, embed it in your website, or post it on other websites such as Facebook. YouTube offers an amazing way to find new customers and visitors for your website. By displaying your website name, logo, or web address in your videos, you will see some traffic come from YouTube…as long as the video is good and people are watching it! If you’re looking to brand yourself and your business, start making some videos and posting them on YouTube!
Website: http://www.youtube.com
Cost: Free

Mint
Looking for a good free way to manage your finances and keep track of your spending? Then you should check out Mint. Mint allows you to link pretty much any bank account, credit card account, and online payment account (like PayPal) to your Mint account and see a summary of your spending and your total income/debt. You can then see trends as to what you are spending the most on and what you need to cut back on. Mint also provides you with different opportunities to save money by switching banks or credit card offers.
Website: http://www.mint.com
Cost: Free

StartupNation
StartupNation is a community website for entrepreneurs featuring step-by-step advice, videos, podcasts, and many resources. The website also features a pretty active forum. StartupNation is definitely a site to keep an eye on as you work on developing your business and have questions you want to try to get answered.
Website: http://www.startupnation.com
Cost: Free

Young Go Getter
Young Go Getter is an active forum for entrepreneurs. You can definitely get the help you need from this group of dedicated people with their knowledge spanning a wide array of industries and technologies. If you have questions about an industry, looking for some help, or just want a place to hang out, then check out YGG.
Website: http://www.younggogetter.com
Cost: Free

Young Entrepreneur
A community of entrepreneurs and want to be entrepreneurs exceeding more than 5000 members strong, YE is a site to visit and visit often. Although some of the content may not always be the most relevant or it may be ’spam’ posts, if you have the time to sort through and find the good stuff, then it is worth it. I talked with the creator a couple weeks back and he says things are in the works to make YE much better in the coming weeks, so keep an eye out! This group of helpful people can definitely be a benefit to you and will help you in any way they can!
Website: http://www.youngentrepreneur.com
Cost: Free

And finally, of course, Dorm Room Biz is always one of the best places to get help as a student entrepreneur!

What are your favorite websites to check and resources to refer to when you need some help?

After a great interview with Mike and the folks at SmartyPig, they were kind enough to send me a $50 gift card for SmartyPig. As a user of SmartyPig, that would be a great little bonus into my own account and to be put towards my savings goal. However, I thought it would be more fun to give it away to someone who sets up an account at SmartyPig. Now, before you get too excited about winning a free $50, this gift card can only be used at SmartyPig.com to be added into your account and go towards one of your goals.

So, here is how things will work. First, you are going to need an account with SmartyPig. So, head over to www.smartypig.com and sign up for an account and set up a savings goal. Then leave a comment with your email address that you used with your SmartyPig account. This will let me check to see that you set up an account and see what people are saving for. By signing up for an account and leaving a comment here on this post, you will be entered into the contest.

Here are a couple other ways to get more chances to win:

• Subscribed to the Email Feed for Dorm Room Biz
• Write about the contest on your blog providing a trackback to this post or leave a comment with a link to your post.

It is as easy as that! The winner be chosen randomly and will be annouced on July 15, 2008. After the contest ends, I’ll contact the winner to get their address and send the gift card off to them!

I look forward to some participation in this contest, and more contests will be coming soon!

So, who wants $50 to save towards their goal?

While I was doing some research for my article “Frugality for College Students – 13 Ways To Save Money While In College” I asked my Twitter friends for some suggestions. One of the replies that popped up was from Mike Ferrari at SmartyPig.com suggesting his website as a way for students to save towards a goal of theirs whether it be for books, a spring break trip, a new camera, a trip, or whatever. So after taking a browse through the SmartyPig website, I decided to give it a shot and test out the system. Because the sign up process was so easy and the site is easy to navigate in it self, I thought it was a great idea. I got in contact with Mike again via Twitter to see if he would be interested in doing an interview for Dorm Room Biz. With that being said, the following is an interview we exchanged via multiple emails. I hope you enjoy!

Start off by telling us a little bit about your background – where you went to school, what you studied, etc.
I’m from Ohio, originally. Bowling Green and Dayton. I moved to Des Moines when I was 15. I went to DePauw University, in Greencastle, Indiana. Graduated in 1993 in Psychology and Business Administration. Went into advertising right after college.

What sparked your initial interest in entrepreneurship?
Always had a thing for coming up with business ideas. You know the routine. You come up with this great idea and ultimately end up talking yourself out of it. I became quite good at it. Drove my wife mad. But one day, almost four years ago, I had this idea that I found really hard to blow holes threw. That idea was and became what is known as SmartyPig.

Almost four years ago, my wife and I had our first child, Charlie. I remember thinking how important it was to start a college savings program for him. I remember starting his 529 plan a few weeks after he was born. We started putting a hundred dollars away each month. And after 5 or 6 months, I remember logging into the 529 site and seeing his savings build. And more importantly, remembering that feeling of “responsible saving”. It was like I hadn’t even missed the money. Automatically taken out of my checking each month. We just became accustomed to not having the money. Soon after I was in Phoenix playing golf with some old college buddies. I had just dropped them off at the airport and I went back to my hotel to kill a few hours before my flight back to Des Moines. I grabbed my computer looking for a site that would help me save up for other things in my life. I wanted to save up for a trip for my wife and I (some day) to go to Italy. A lofty goal I knew would take years to save for. And I also knew I wanted a new road bike next year. Was training for Ride The Rockies with some friends… So I just assumed there was a site out their that was all about “goal savings”. When I didn’t see it, I guess you could say I had my “light bulb” moment. Started drafting a business plan right then and there. It was all I thought about. Trying to shoot holes in the idea from every direction. I spent the next few months flushing out the idea and showed it to a friend of mine, Jon Gaskell. It wasn’t long before the two of us quit our jobs and became the co-founders of SmartyPig.

What is SmartyPig, how did you get involved with the project, and what role do you play now?
So what is SmartyPig you ask? Well, simply put, SmartyPig helps you save for specific goals in your life. Be it a vacation, a wedding, a big-screen TV, a home remodel, etc… Anything! It’s the only banking application that is truly social, allowing you to make your goal “public” so your mom, dad, family and friends can contribute to your interest bearing savings goals. In addition, if you know what you are saving for, SmartyPig has partnered with almost 20 retailers around the country (like Amazon.com, Best Buy, Sears, Home Depot, etc…) that will give you up to an additional 5% cash boost to your savings. SmartyPig goals are FDIC insured and accrue interest (currently 3.9% APY). It really is a 21st century piggy bank.

You can see my goals on SmartyPig here: http://www.smartypig.com/friends-goals Just type in my email address – mferrari@smartypig.com

We really don’t have titles here. We wear a lot of hats. Spend a lot of my time talking and listening to customers. Jon and I are copied on every customer service email and many times, find ourselves emailing back and forth with a customer. It’s great to hear what our customers are saving for and about how passionate they are about SmartyPig. I work closely with the developers to ensure the site delivers on a positive customer experience, brainstorm about future enhancements and services and I oversee the daily operations of the company.

When did SmartyPig open its doors and launch?
SmartyPig was founded in January 2007. We were in BETA for the first few months of 2008. We officially launched in April of 2008.

What advantages do you see SmartyPig having over other competition in the area of online banks and savings accounts such as ING direct? What would make someone want to switch to SmartyPig from another service?
Well, in all reality, we see us competing more with credit card companies than traditional online savings companies. We’re really trying to reverse the “buy now, pay later” mentality. The beauty of SmartyPig is that we really aren’t asking people to change banks. Keep your existing banking relationships. Save for retirement. Save for your 529. But when it comes time to save for specific things in your life, we believe there is no better way than SmartyPig. It’s fun. It’s social. And most importantly, it’s rewarding. Wouldn’t it be nice to own that vacation on the plane ride home? Not have to worry about paying it off for the next 20 months?

We also see SmartyPig playing a big role with parents and kids. Wouldn’t it be nice to finally sit down with your kids and talk about the importance of savings? SmartyPig let’s parents do just that. SmartyPig is using the latest in Web 2.0 technologies, including blogs, Facebook, a comprehensive widget platform that spans over 20 social networking sites, Twitter and Get Satisfaction.
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Des-Moines-IA/SmartyPig/8164998395
Twitter: http://twitter.com/smartypig
Get Satisfaction: http://getsatisfaction.com/smartypig
Blog: http://blog.smartypig.com/

I don’t know if your willing to tell but, I figured I’d ask: Since launching SmartyPig, how many registered users have you had? And is there any way to follow how much money has been saved (or an estimate) with your service?
I can tell you that in two short months, we have customers in all 50 states. And as you suggested, SmartyPig has some pretty powerful metrics. We know what users are savings for, how much they are saving and when the are going to reach their goal.

What are the growth plans for SmartyPig? Are there goals that you are trying to reach over the next few months, year, etc such as a certain number of users, etc?
Each day I get to work, I think about how we can make SmartyPig better. We listen to our customers and react quickly. With that said, we are humbled by the response SmartyPig has been getting around the country and around the globe. We are looking at a number of opportunities for SmartyPig to expand globally. We believe the concept of savings resonates everywhere.

What has been your largest road block/challenge that you and your team have faced with launching a web 2.0 company such as SmartyPig?
There has not been one specific road block that comes to mind. Our biggest hurdles were in regards to the barrier to entry to the online financial services space in general. We worked very closely with our banking partner, auditors, state and federal regulatory groups. Our biggest challenges frankly stemmed from the fact that no one had ever seen a company like SmartyPig do what we set forth to do. And that is to build the only true banking application that is social.

Entrepreneurs who are still in their start up phases usually have some pretty good advice for younger entrepreneurs or students who are thinking about starting a business or may have just started one. What are some words of wisdom that you would pass along to help them out? Possibly things you wish you had known/thought about, etc.
Believe in the idea. And believe in yourself. I can’t tell you how many times I heard someone say “well, that will never work”. Just because someone has never done it, does not mean it can’t be done. Don’t take someone’s word for it. Do your own research and find the answers yourself. And most importantly, don’t be afraid to get outside your comfort zone. It’s usually when the best thinking occurs.

Being an internet based company, I am sure you spend a lot of time on the computer. When you get tired of looking at your own website or have some down time, what websites do you check out, what forums do you participate in, or what blogs do you read?
I have a few favorites. LinkedIn. Twitter. Mashable. TechCrunch. Crave. Facebook. Mint. I spend a lot of time (primarily at night) on the web just interacting with sites. Seeing how people are using things like AJAX and other techniques to enhance the user experience. I also love following what our friends at Happy Cog are up to. Granted we were a client, I think they’re all geniuses.
http://www.happycog.com

Finally, can you tell what the most saved for item or event is with the current users of SmartyPig?

What I can share with you is that the top 5 categories for savings on SmartyPig are as follows: saving to save, travel, electronics, home improvement, and weddings.

*****

Thanks again Mike for working with me to put together a great interview! Also, for our readers, look out for a great prize coming soon (as in a few days) from SmartyPig to encourage you to sign up and start saving!