When we started working on BatchBook waaaay back in 2006, we set out to create the best darn CRM ever. Along the way, we’ve looked to our customers for input as we added partner integrations and feature upgrades. BatchBook customers have driven the development of BatchBook as much as we have.
But we can’t do everything, which is why we made sure that we made our API available to anyone who wanted to build something cool using BatchBook. Today we’re launching a new page on our site that highlights the efforts of people who are updating, integrating and modifying BatchBook in ways we never even imagined.
Meet the BatchMakers!
From our friend Kurt Milam who’s been building a multitude of ways to get data in and out of BatchBook to Michael Doornbos who used SuperTags to build a visual scoreboard for Lunar X Prize participants, we’ve seen some pretty amazing stuff come from the minds of our clever users. And we’re looking forward to seeing more!
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Tags: api, batchbook, batchmakers, Community, integration
The fine folks over at Xioup who have wowed us in the past with their own custom development for BatchBook Web Forms have been brewing a new project for a while that we’re happy to help them announce today.
WebFormGlue is a new service that allows you to connect your web forms with various SaaS products. We’re psyched that they have decided to launch with their initial integration point featuring our very own BatchBook and our other fine friends over at Formstack.
They’ve got all the details and some sample forms you can fill out to give feedback and apply for alpha testing.
We’re excited to see the great things that people are building using our API.
Tags: api, formstack, web froms, webformglue
You may have noticed our big announcement yesterday that BatchBook is now listed in the Google Apps Marketplace. We’ve since gotten a number of people (including reporters, other SaaS companies and even a few customers) asking us simply, “Why did you join?” So I thought I would share my response with you all.
As I explained to Mike Pearson who wrote an article about the new Marketplace for the E-Commerce Times, it just felt like the right thing to do. Let me explain why.
Google understands the value of giving customers control of their own information. All of the Google Apps business products have a publicly available API. You may think this is only important to tech addicts and uber geeks. But THIS IS HUGE for every entrepreneur who cares about growing their business. You see, this is Google’s way of saying (and something BatchBook says as well), “the business information that you trust to our care is yours – do what you need to do with it to succeed.” Yes, Google Apps let you send e-mails, schedule events and create spreadsheets. But they’ve just increased 20 fold what else you can easily do with YOUR information including tracking deals, sending newsletters, generating invoices, scheduling appointments, managing your projects, sending surveys and so much more.
And they were able to do that because a few years ago they made the decision to make their API, the gateway to the data stored within the Google applications, available to anyone their customers chose to grant access to it. They did it in a smart way, in a secure way and honestly, in a pretty gusty way. They knew customers might take their data and run. They knew competitors would have a peek at their inner workings. But they focused on empowering their users to take control of their own data, whether through a geeky friend, a trusted reseller, or another SaaS product. And their users are now benefiting immensely.
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Tags: api, batchblue, batchbook, google apps marketplace, small business web
If you haven’t been hanging out in the BatchBook Developers Forum, you might not have heard about our recent API updates. We’ve overhauled the API to make it even easier for programmers to integrate their applications with BatchBook. Just as importantly, the documentation for the API. Check it out at http://developer.batchblue.com/.
BatchBook has had an API for some time now, but these updates really make it ready for prime time. While this news only directly affects programmers, we’ll all benefit from the resulting integrations between BatchBook and other awesome tools. A recent post on ProgrammableWeb extolled the business case for APIs, and we’ve been supporting the same ideas via the Small Business Web.
As usual, this update to BatchBook wouldn’t have been as good without the involvement of some of our awesome users. Several folks in the Developers Forum have been giving great feedback and helping other developers get started with the API. I’d like to especially recognize Andrew Flusche and guedalia, who have been contributing sample PHP code for other users to use freely. Thanks again, guys!
We’re really excited to see what great things you all will build with the BatchBook API. I hope to see you in the Developers Forum if you have any questions or just want to show off what you’re working on.
Tags: api, developers, forums
We’re pleased to announce the launch of our official Small Business Web site (thesmallbusinessweb.com). Here, we introduce you to the founding members of the Small Business Web and our new friends, lay out our mission, and encourage other companies with similar philosophies on helping small businesses to sign our newly-created manifesto.
You can also show your support of the Small Business Web by putting a custom badge on your site. Choose from a variety of lovely, hand-crafted badges here.
If you’re working to make the world a better place for small business owners and you have an open API, we invite you to join us. Is small the future of business? No one can say for sure. But we do know that when lots of small businesses get together, big things can happen.
Tags: api, small business, small business web
