Bizzbuzz is a business to business website that allows small business to try out services and products without paying full price. Darryl Adams was able to speak to founder Marcus Layton about the business was founded and his goals.
bizzbuzz
Bizzbuzz was soft launched in May 2011. With nine offers running from late May to late June, the site had an incredible response. After the launch, the site was taken offline to focus on creating partnerships with vendors and to allow a revamp of the website.
The company is funded as a bootstrap, as Marcus sold his previous company (Pinstripe Dry Cleaning) to create Bizzbuzz. In forming the company, Marcus was looking for a business that was easy to scale and that would “make money while you sleep”. Marcus admits that moving from a brick and mortar company to online was a steep learning curve, especially in learning how to acquire the infrastructure and skills needed to create the website.
One of the major elements in both building the company and selling its service is connecting with the right individuals. For the skills in setting up the tech side of the site, to the selling of the services to potential customers, the relationships formed are the backbone to the business. It can also allow innovation, like MYOB using Bizzbuzz for its first major free offer of its cloud accounting service.
Marketing the site has been via word and mouth and via the press. Marcus found advertising to be not as effective, spreading the word virally has a greater impact. Social Media is also heavily used on the site.
In terms of future growth, Marcus sees immediate potential in the local market. However, he would not close doors if overseas expansion opportunities arise. There is still growth potential, despite the shaky economic climate, and Bizzbuzz has a rather compelling model backed up with data and revenue.
Looking at the previous deals offered, it is clear that businesses can benefit from being a vendor and a client. One key focus of the site was a greater level of transparency – each deal shows the cost, savings and the number of businesses that took advantage of it.
The range on offer is intriguing, from Courier Please (a deal mentioned by Marcus as being his highlight), to Coffee from Bay Beans and Logo designs from georgemoussa.com . Each deal has a discussion area, and there is an extensive amount of information available. Each deal also can be shared via social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin.
Today is the last day of the MYOB LiveAccounts deal (3 month service free at a value of $75) and a new deal regarding video production from Surge Media. For more info, check out bizzbuzz.com.au.
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