Anyone that has used an Australian mobile overseas knows international roaming charges are expensive and mobile data charges are just as prohibitive. It was with much excitement I discovered “Roaming Sim” – This product is 80% less than standard overseas mobile call charges.

Roaming Sim looks like a great product and I’m looking forward to trying it out later this month.

Cynthia Price,

Marketing & Communications Manager

Enterprise Search

I was surprised to read in the Business section of today’s Sydney Morning Herald that 60% of Australian small businesses aren’t online. The results come from a MYOB small business survey released today.

According to the survey “60 per cent of small businesses do not have an online presence” -   I’m honestly surprised the figure is so high. With so many cost-effective online options available to Australian businesses owners (a free business listing on Enterprise Search seems like a good first step) I can only put it down to a lack of knowledge / understanding.

Online marketing / Advertising is taking an increasingly large role in the marketing mix and savvy organisations are diverting funds away from the traditional media formats (Print, TV & Radio) and spending more on cost-effective / highly scalable online advertising.

Cynthia Price,

Marketing & Communications Manager

Enterprise Search

Over my summer holiday I read a wonderful book, “Mastery; The keys to success & long-term fulfilment”. I would recommend this book to anyone who has made the decision to be the best they can and maximise the effectiveness of their efforts in all pursuits.

The book is written by George Leonard a twenty year veteran of aikido and through this study of martial arts has developed a strong insight into Zen philosophy.

In the book George talks about today’s goal obsessed society. How our obsession with results and outcome undermines our ability to truly develop skill. Our fixation on results distracts us from developing a strong foundation and much like the DIY home builder rushing to erect his/her home in the quickest amount of time (goal) the whole thing comes crashing down.

George says “How do you best move towards mastery? To put it simply, you practice diligently, but you practice primarily for the sake of the practice itself. Rather than being frustrated while on the plateau, you learn to appreciate and enjoy it just as much as you do the upward surges”

I can’t recommend this book enough and have given a copy to my work colleagues at Enterprise Search.

Cynthia Price,

Marketing & Communications Manager

Enterprise Search

Christmas has got me in the mood for some shopping and I’ve decided it’s time to upgrade my Blackberry. I was seriously considering the new Blackberry “Storm” – Vodafone has an exclusive distribution agreement and that would involve me leaving Telstra. After much consideration I have decided to aborted that idea and go with the Blackberry bold and stay with the NextG network.

Based on my current situation buying the phone outright is the best option, so I’ve called around various stores and the handset costs $999 outright. I thought it was prudent to continue shopping around and decided to look at eBay. I have found sellers with a ‘buy it now price’ around the $750.00 mark. A saving of $250!

Reducing costs and researching alternatives is an important methodology to employ in business. Being a prudent financial manager ensures longevity in the competitive business environment. At Enterprise Search we believe saving money and reducing costs is just as important as growing revenue and increasing sales. I’ll keep you posted on my Blackberry acquisition

Have a happy and safe Christmas !

Cynthia Price,

Marketing & Communications Manager

Enterprise Search

When I travel I use BigPonds wireless broadband service, BigPond wireless broadband runs on Telstra’s NextG mobile network. I know a lot of people have issues with Telstra, customer service aside this product is amazing.

I’ve done a fair amount of research and these are the reasons why the Telstra network is so good:

1.       The NextG network is the fastest mobile broadband network in the world! (Telstra holds the Guinness book of records award for the fastest mobile broadband network) The current peak speed is 7.2 Mega bits per second and will be upgraded to 21 Mega bits per second by January 09 – That’s as fast as broadband cable!

2.       Coverage – The network covers 2 million square km which is four times larger than any other 3g network in Australia, that’s equal to 99% of the Australian population.

I have compared speed and coverage to other telcos in Australia and the NextG network wins hands down. The price is more, but as they say ‘you pay peanuts…you get monkeys’

Cynthia Price,

Marketing & Communications Manager

Enterprise Search