Benefits of a BB to a Business?

Hi all, this is my first post, I am from the UK and I'm currently considering upgrading to the Blackberry Curve 8900 (rather than the iPhone). As from Jan'09 I will be buying into a cash business (Chip Shop) and I am therefore in the market for a smartphone that would be better suited to my business needs (but also for personal use too). I've done some research and know about the emails etc on the move with the BB, however my questions would be:

How do YOU make your BB work for your business?

What applications would you advise to me which would suit the type of industry my business competes?

What would say the best feature the BB has from a business or personal perspective?


I am buying the contract myself and it will be on the o2 network. I have never had a BB before but from the research I've done they seem a better option than the iPhone. Any help/advice would be very much appreciated.

First welcome to the site. I don't know how I ran a business without the bb now. Instead of carrying a laptop and scheduals and contact sheets etc..... it's all in the phone. I carry data from store to store in the bb. The best feature would be the organization between business and personal and the convenience of info always there.

My BlackBerry is my office in my hand.

I have client agreement forms, Invoice forms and other important files in Word documents. DocsToGo for editing and attach them to messages keeps the business flowing smoothly.

Either the BB Bold or BB8900 would be an excellent choice. Most everything you need will already come with the phone. Take the time to learn all the features in the phone, and the various shortcuts, which will help significantly with efficiency. Enjoy, and best of luck with the new gadget and business.

Thanks guys for the responses.