Business.com
Encyclopedia
Business.com is a business search engine
and web directory
and pay per click
advertising network
. It includes Work.com, a business-to-business
community publishing platform where experts share advice on common business topics in the form of how-to guides.
, previously chairman of the Walt Disney Internet Group; and Sky Dayton
, founder of Earthlink
, Boingo Wireless
, and Helio
, among others. Around that time, the Business.com domain name was purchased from Marc Ostrofsky
by Winebaum's eCompanies Ventures for a then record $7.5 million. This represented a tidy profit over the $150,000 price tag of the domain in 1997, also a record in its own time. In addition to investment by eCompanies, early funding in the amount of $61 million was provided in 2000 by Pearson PLC
, Reed Business Information
, McGraw Hill, and others. In its initial form, Business.com aimed to be the Internet's leading search engine for small business and corporate information.
As with much of the nascent and well-hyped Internet industry, Business.com struggled through the Dot-com bubble
years. The company retooled beginning in 2002 after massive layoffs and a new focus on developing a pay for performance
ad network model. In April 2003, the company achieved profitability, and on November 8, 2004, having survived the collapse of the dot-com bubble, the company secured an additional $10 million in venture capital funding from Benchmark Capital
.
On October 9, 2006, Business.com launched Work.com, a site with business how-to guides contributed by the small business community.
Then on July 26, 2007, after beating out Dow Jones & Company
, the New York Times Company, IAC/InterActiveCorp
, and News Corp, print and interactive marketing company R.H. Donnelley
Corporation announced plans to acquire Business.com in a deal valued at $345 million. The deal closed on August 23, 2007.
In June 2009, R.H. Donnelley filed for bankruptcy. The company emerged from Chapter 11 as Dex One Corporation on February 1, 2010.
In February 2011, Resource Nation
acquired the brand and associated assets of Business.com to become one of the largest online destinations for business buyers looking for business-to-business (B2B solutions. JMI Equity
, a growth equity firm that specializes in investments in internet companies, provided funding in support of the transaction and the Company's ongoing growth. Resource Nation Chief Executive Officer Ryan Peddycord will lead both both businesses with a combination of Business.com and Resource Nation management teams. Terms of the transactions were not disclosed.
The search results page also includes relevant content from the Work.com web site when available.
The pay for performance Business.com Advertising Network distributes paid advertiser listings across a number of business-focused web sites. Some key partners within the ad network have at times included (non-exhaustive list):
Search engine
A search engine is an information retrieval system designed to help find information stored on a computer system. The search results are usually presented in a list and are commonly called hits. Search engines help to minimize the time required to find information and the amount of information...
and web directory
Web directory
A web directory or link directory is a directory on the World Wide Web. It specializes in linking to other web sites and categorizing those links....
and pay per click
Pay per click
Pay per click is an Internet advertising model used to direct traffic to websites, where advertisers pay the publisher when the ad is clicked. With search engines, advertisers typically bid on keyword phrases relevant to their target market...
advertising network
Advertising network
An online advertising network or ad network is a company that connects advertisers to web sites that want to host advertisements. The key function of an ad network is aggregation of ad space supply from publishers and matching it with advertiser demand...
. It includes Work.com, a business-to-business
Business-to-business
Business-to-business describes commerce transactions between businesses, such as between a manufacturer and a wholesaler, or between a wholesaler and a retailer...
community publishing platform where experts share advice on common business topics in the form of how-to guides.
History
Business.com, Inc. was founded in 1999 by Jake WinebaumJake Winebaum
Jake Winebaum is an American entrepreneur. Winebaum is the founder of FamilyFun magazine, Business.com, and co-founder of and .- Early life :...
, previously chairman of the Walt Disney Internet Group; and Sky Dayton
Sky Dayton
Sky Dylan Dayton is an American entrepreneur.Dayton is the founder of EarthLink, co-founder of eCompanies, founder and chairman of Boingo.-Early life:...
, founder of Earthlink
EarthLink
EarthLink , is an Internet service provider headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. It claims 1.94 million subscribers.- Business :EarthLink provides a variety of Internet connection types, including dial-up, DSL, satellite, and cable. Both dial-up and high speed Internet access are available...
, Boingo Wireless
Boingo Wireless
Boingo Wireless is a public company that provides global Wi-Fi services at more than 125,000 hotspots worldwide – including hundreds of airports, thousands of hotels, and tens of thousand cafes and coffee shops. It was founded by Sky Dayton, who also founded Earthlink.In January 2011, the company...
, and Helio
Helio
Helio was a Mobile virtual network operator wireless carrier launched on May 2, 2006. It was founded by EarthLink founder Sky Dayton. It was a joint venture between SK Telecom and EarthLink...
, among others. Around that time, the Business.com domain name was purchased from Marc Ostrofsky
Marc Ostrofsky
Marc Ostrofsky is the New York Times Bestselling author of Get Rich Click!: The Ultimate Guide to Making Money Online. The book was #1 on USA TODAY Bestselling books, #1 on the Wall Street Journal Bestselling business books list, #1 on Barnes & Noble as well as #1 Amazon.com in multiple...
by Winebaum's eCompanies Ventures for a then record $7.5 million. This represented a tidy profit over the $150,000 price tag of the domain in 1997, also a record in its own time. In addition to investment by eCompanies, early funding in the amount of $61 million was provided in 2000 by Pearson PLC
Pearson PLC
Pearson plc is a global media and education company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is both the largest education company and the largest book publisher in the world, with consumer imprints including Penguin, Dorling Kindersley and Ladybird...
, Reed Business Information
Reed Business Information
Reed Business Information is a large business publisher in the United States, United Kingdom, continental Europe, Australia and Asia, often referred to as RBI...
, McGraw Hill, and others. In its initial form, Business.com aimed to be the Internet's leading search engine for small business and corporate information.
As with much of the nascent and well-hyped Internet industry, Business.com struggled through the Dot-com bubble
Dot-com bubble
The dot-com bubble was a speculative bubble covering roughly 1995–2000 during which stock markets in industrialized nations saw their equity value rise rapidly from growth in the more...
years. The company retooled beginning in 2002 after massive layoffs and a new focus on developing a pay for performance
Pay for performance advertising
Pay for Performance Advertising, or PPP, is a term used in Internet marketing to define a popular pricing model whereby a marketing agency will receive a bounty from an advertiser for each new lead or new customer obtained for the advertiser through the agency's online marketing efforts...
ad network model. In April 2003, the company achieved profitability, and on November 8, 2004, having survived the collapse of the dot-com bubble, the company secured an additional $10 million in venture capital funding from Benchmark Capital
Benchmark Capital
Benchmark Capital is a venture capital firm responsible for the early stage funding of some very successful startups. In 1997, the firm invested $6.7 million in eBay, which became worth more than $5 billion by the spring of 1999. Other high-profile investments include Ariba, Juniper Networks, Red...
.
On October 9, 2006, Business.com launched Work.com, a site with business how-to guides contributed by the small business community.
Then on July 26, 2007, after beating out Dow Jones & Company
Dow Jones & Company
Dow Jones & Company is an American publishing and financial information firm.The company was founded in 1882 by three reporters: Charles Dow, Edward Jones, and Charles Bergstresser. Like The New York Times and the Washington Post, the company was in recent years publicly traded but privately...
, the New York Times Company, IAC/InterActiveCorp
IAC/InterActiveCorp
InterActiveCorp is an American internet company with over 50 brands across 40 countries headquartered in New York City...
, and News Corp, print and interactive marketing company R.H. Donnelley
R.H. Donnelley
Dex One Corporation provides online, mobile and print search marketing via their DexKnows.com website, print yellow pages directories and pay-per-click ad networks in the U.S.-History:...
Corporation announced plans to acquire Business.com in a deal valued at $345 million. The deal closed on August 23, 2007.
In June 2009, R.H. Donnelley filed for bankruptcy. The company emerged from Chapter 11 as Dex One Corporation on February 1, 2010.
In February 2011, Resource Nation
Resource Nation
Resource Nation is located in San Diego, California and has an office in Santa Monica, California and Boston, Massachusetts. The company connects businesses with local and national vendors and allows them to compare based on price, geographic region, industry specialty, and other specifications...
acquired the brand and associated assets of Business.com to become one of the largest online destinations for business buyers looking for business-to-business (B2B solutions. JMI Equity
JMI Equity
JMI Equity is a growth equity firm focused on investing in leading software, internet, business services and healthcare IT companies. JMI provides capital for growth, recapitalizations, acquisitions and buyouts. Founded in 1992, JMI has invested in more than 100 companies throughout North...
, a growth equity firm that specializes in investments in internet companies, provided funding in support of the transaction and the Company's ongoing growth. Resource Nation Chief Executive Officer Ryan Peddycord will lead both both businesses with a combination of Business.com and Resource Nation management teams. Terms of the transactions were not disclosed.
Business model
Business.com compiles search results from a combination of sources and applies a proprietary categorization scheme to organize the information gathered. Results to user queries may include suggested categories, sponsored links from the Business.com directory, and relevant web sites as provided in partnership with Google.The search results page also includes relevant content from the Work.com web site when available.
The pay for performance Business.com Advertising Network distributes paid advertiser listings across a number of business-focused web sites. Some key partners within the ad network have at times included (non-exhaustive list):
- The Wall Street JournalThe Wall Street JournalThe Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
See also
- AllBusiness.comAllBusiness.comAllBusiness.com, a wholly owned subsidiary of Dun & Bradstreet, provides business information and resources for small businesses, those companies with fewer than 500 employees...
- BusinessWeekBusinessWeekBloomberg Businessweek, commonly and formerly known as BusinessWeek, is a weekly business magazine published by Bloomberg L.P. It is currently headquartered in New York City.- History :...
- ForbesForbesForbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, the Forbes magazine, is published biweekly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published biweekly, and Business Week...
- Hoover'sHoover'sHoover's, Inc., a subsidiary of Dun & Bradstreet, is a business research company that has provided information on U.S. and foreign companies and industries since 1990. Since 1993, the company has made its information available on its website.-Operations:...
- The Financial Times
External links
- Business.com web site
- Work.com web site
- Business.com, Inc. company profile from BusinessWeek
- Business.com's winding road, CNN's Money.com article based on an interview with Jake Winebaum.
- Interview with Jake Winebaum, previous CEO of Business.com via socaltech.com
- eCompanies venture capital site