Entrepreneur's Journal: Five Cool iPhone Apps for Your Business

Posted Feb 21st 2010 5:40PM by Tom Taulli
Filed under: Apple Inc (AAPL), iPhone, Small Business

Since hitting the market in 2007, Apple's (AAPL) iPhone has seen incredible growth. The design is sleek and the experience is user-friendly. Besides, there are more than 140,000 applications to download.

Interestingly enough, more and more entrepreneurs are using the iPhone to help run their businesses.

So what are some of the top apps? Well, I had a chance to talk to Rick Singer, who operates TechStartUps.com (which is a site that provides coverage of business technologies). Yes, he's an avid user of the iPhone and has provided some apps to consider. Let's take a look:

Bento ($4.99): This is part of FileMaker, which is actually wholly-owned by Apple. Bento helps you perform tasks like keeping track of your contacts and calendar, monitoring your projects, setting up to-do lists and even cataloging inventory. You can also use it for personal things, such as to log the progress of your diet. In fact, Bento has a template exchange that allows you to download hundreds of tasks.

Box.net (free): What if you're working with a client and need to share large files and make edits? Or, you have a programmer who is off-shore and you need to manage a project? This is easy to do with Box.net, which is a web-based collaboration service. As for the iPhone app, the latest version allows you to post, view and reply to comments on any file or folder. It's also possible to edit Microsoft (MSFT) Word and Excel files.

HoursTracker ($2.99): With this app, you can track the time sheets for workers and contractors. It's a matter of just tapping on a clock and adding a description. You can also add hourly rate information and the estimated tax percentage, which is automatically calculated.

Invoice2go ($9.99): As the name implies, you can create invoices, bill clients and generate reports. There are a variety of templates for invoices, allowing for customization.

Business Card Reader ($4.99): Have a stack of business cards you need to enter? You can take pictures of the cards, which will then be scanned and converted into a contact list.

Tom Taulli advises on business tax preparation and resolving tax problems. He is also the author of a variety of books, including The Complete M&A Handbook. His website is at Taulli.com.

Tags: AAPL, Apple, apps, Bento, Box.net, featured, HoursTracker, Invoice2go, iPhone, Rick Singer, TechStartUps.com

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

2-23-2010 @ 11:40PM

iPhone Apps said...

Hi,
Really COOL iphone app reviews,specially....
1 box.net.
2 Bento.

Thanks for Sharing

2-24-2010 @ 3:28AM

BC said...

How did you decide on "Business Card Reader" over the others? I didn't know this kind of app existed for the iPhone. I went to the iTunes store to look at "Business Card Reader" and discovered there are a lot of apps that do this.

3-09-2010 @ 10:20AM

hebelsjohn said...

Concorde Capital releases FinMarkets iPhone application.

FinMarkets is a one-stop mobile portal for the latest market news, videos and trading information, with a focus on Ukraine that reaches beyond. FinMarkets offers index data; equity, bond and currency quotes; the latest market-moving news summaries; and video.

Concorde Capital’s FinMarkets is the first Ukraine finance-oriented application on the iTunes store. There are no analogues available specifically for other CIS markets.

FinMarkets features:
Daily market comment covering Ukrainian equity, bond and currency trends
Market events monitor - receive the latest up-to-date corporate and industry developments & news that are moving markets every day. Commentary provided by Concorde Capital's award-winning research team
Videos by ConcordeTube - bringing you market views, wraps and discussions of hot topics by Concorde Capital’s innovative investment TV channel
Indices: UX, PFTS, RTS, Dow Jones, S&P 500, NASDAQ 100, FTSE 100, Nikkei 225; Ukrainian Exchange (UX) live
Equities, bonds and currency quotes

Concorde Capital’s FinMarkets is currently in Version 1.1. The application is compatible with the iPhone and iPod Touch, and will also be suitable for Apple’s forthcoming iPad.

4-09-2010 @ 7:59PM

cool apps said...

Fantastic thank you..I found this to..

http://www.cool-iphone-apps.com

4-13-2010 @ 3:11PM

Okie said...

Another cool business app is from FranklinCovey based on their new book released from Stephen Covey and Jennifer Colosimo. The app (and the book) is called "Great Work, Great Career" and has cool tools and advice to help focus your personal and work goals more effectively and better achieve them.

They're running a sale on their app today. More details at this link: http://bit.ly/cGdrau