Here’s a list of 10 of the best business freebies,
many from well-known companies like Microsoft and Office Depot:

Business advice
The Service Corps of Retired Executives provides free business advice on its Web site. The mentors consist of over 10,000 successful entrepreneurs and executives. You can arrange to meet with them in person, via email or through online discussion forums. Website: http://www.score.org

Accounting software
It’s no secret that small-business owners often have trouble managing the company’s finances. Microsoft offers a complete accounting solution for businesses with Accounting Express 2008. You can track expenses, invoices, employee’s salaries, etc.
Website: http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/accountingexpress/FX101729681033.aspx

Shipping materials
Simply by asking, the United States Postal Service will send you free shipping materials. Different-sized boxes, forms and stickers are all available to help you send out shipments and prepare mailings.
Website: http://www.usps.com

Website and email

Yes, believe it or not, you can have a business website with email addresses up and running today – at no cost to you. With Live Basics, Microsoft makes getting your site live – fast and easy. You get a domain name, hosting, 500MB of website storage space, 25 company-branded e-mail accounts, web site design tools and website reports. Not bad!
Website: http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/officelive/FX101534261033.aspx

Shopping cart

AgoraCart offers websites a free e-commerce shopping cart solution. You can choose from a simple design to a more complex one with a ton of features. AgoraCart truly makes adding a store to your site simple!
Website: http://www.agoracart.com/

Backlink checker

In order to improve your website’s ranking with various search engines, you should first know how many backlinks search engines like Google and Yahoo! have found on your URL. Simply enter your URL on the Site Reference website and you’ll have a detailed report in just a few seconds.
Website: http://www.site-reference.com/webmasterTools/backlinkCheck.php

Business cards

For a while now, VistaPrint has been offering 250 free business cards for free. True, you have to pay $5.45 for the shipping, but that is still dirt cheap. The best part is that overall consumers seem to be very impressed with the cards they receive. A great way to give your business that professional touch, without a lot of money spent.
Website: http://www.vistaprint.com

Business Courses

The Small Business Administration offers links to more than 40 free business courses. With subjects ranging from marketing, finance, advertising, management, etc., you’re sure to find something that will help to improve your company. Many of the courses were designed in cooperation with colleges and universities and offer up-to-date business knowledge. Each course is short, only taking about thirty minutes to complete.
Website: http://www.sba.gov/services/training/onlinecourses/index.html

Content

If you want to bulk your website up with content but don’t have the time or expertise to write the articles and don’t want to pay a writer, then ArticleGeek is for you. With thousands of copyright-free articles on a wide variety of topics, you’re sure to find plenty to keep your website full of informative articles. The articles are constantly updated, so you’ll always have access to plenty of fresh and up-to-date information.
Website: http://www.articlegeek.com

Business forms

Office Depot has a web page filled with hundreds of downloadable business forms: contracts, invoices, purchase orders, non-disclosure agreements, tax forms etc. If you need any type of business form or correspondence, this is the place to look.

Website: http://www.officedepot.com/renderStaticPage.do?context=/content&file=/BusinessTools/forms/default.jsp

If you’re looking for even more business freebies, check out www.searchfreeapps.com – there’s every type of business freebie imaginable on there, many of which have been tested by the site owners.