BestVendor launches a Yelp-like resource for business tools

Have you ever wanted to know what tools and systems other companies use? Phone systems? CMS options? Billing services? etc. The logistics of setting up a company’s infrastructure can be a painful process. BestVendor, a New York City startup launched today with its Yelp-like resource for business products, which harnesses social recommendations to help small businesses make faster, smarter purchasing.

BestVendor’s business directory includes ratings and reviews for web services, cloud apps and other business tools. “It’s a give-to-get community,” explains Jeff Giesea, the CEO of BestVendor. In order to access the site, you sign in with Linkedin and share your 3 favorite “work apps”. In exchange for sharing a few tools you use in your business, you can browse other companies and people to see what they’re using in theirs- for free. You can filter results by industry, company size or by your social network.

BestVendor will leverage this data set to provide rankings of product categories like collaboration software, web hosting providers, or payroll providers based on what others use and recommend. Check out BestVendor’s ranking of the 10 most popular startup tools here.

A few notable industry stars are already using the platform:

Founded in January 2011, BestVendor wants to help early adopters at startups and small businesses with guidance and navigation. The company’s long-term vision is to become the go-to resource for recommendations and reviews of all work-related apps, much like Amazon is to books and Yelp is to restaurants.

“Business people deserve a single destination where they can benefit from the experience of others,” said Giesea, who previously founded the B2B media company FierceMarkets. “Why do everything the hard way? With BestVendor, professionals can quickly access peer recommendations and user reviews to find tools that enhance their productivity and success at work.”

BestVendor raised $600,000 in a seed round at the end of June. The round was led by SoftBank Capital and Lerer Ventures and also included Silicon Valley super-angels SVAngel and Peter Thiel.

Featured image: Shutterstock/Olinchuk