Where Am I?

This story appears in the May 2004 issue of Entrepreneur. Subscribe »

Mobile warriors can't afford to get lost on the way to a business meeting, and it's no fun circling around looking for the hotel you booked for the night. A Global Positioning System (GPS) makes sense for entrepreneurs on the road or their on-the-go sales forces. The technology has been around for awhile, but now it's more popular, user-friendly and affordable (basic GPS devices can cost less than $100). ABI Research, a technology market research firm, sees the market for GPS hitting $22 billion by 2008.

One full-featured system is Belkin's $299 (all prices street) Bluetooth GPS navigation system. It works with your laptop or Pocket PC to provide navigation with visual and voice prompts. All-in-one devices that don't require external hardware are also available. Garmin is a major manufacturer of GPS devices for all uses. Its $550 iQue 3600 integrates GPS with a Palm OS handheld, a convenient two-for-one bundle for mobile entrepreneurs.

A growing business use for GPS is keeping track of company cars. You can make sure they're going where they're supposed to and aren't taking any side trips. A GPS system with all the bells and whistles isn't cheap, but businesspeople who are always on the go and covering new ground can justify the expense.