Dell and the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) recently announced the 10 U.S. finalists for the Fifth Annual Dell/NFIB Small Business Excellence Award. The award honors small innovative companies that use technology to better serve their customers' experience.Frank Muehleman, vice president and general manager of Dell Small and Medium Business says of the contest, “The No. 1 reason small businesses use technology is to better serve customers, and no one is doing that better than this year’s 10 finalists.”

One of the Top 10 finalists is Ryan Rugroden of Onalaska, Wisconsin. Ryan has been a SoftPlan user for over fourteen years. He was selected as a finalist as his company, Rugroden Drafting & Design, uses SoftPlan Architectural Design Software to turn a customer’s requests, thoughts, and ideas into a fully-rendered, 3D “virtual” home with detail right down to the interior design. Ryan and his customers can sit at his computer and take a virtual walk through their future home, provide and gather feedback, and see instant modifications.

Five years ago, Ryan founded his own company as he sought to differentiate himself from the competition by leveraging technology to assist in the designing and redesigning of a customers’ dream home. “We don’t live in a 2D world, so why settle for a 2D house plan,” said Ryan. “I always tell my customers, you wouldn’t spend thousands of dollars on a car just by looking at the manufacturer’s plans, so why wouldn’t you also test drive your new home?”

Ryan finds that most consumers don’t understand a floorplan, which can be very frustrating for the customer. By capitalizing on his tech-savvy skills to cater to customers in a unique way, Ryan can better meet his customer’s needs, compete with other businesses, and grow his business.

The finalists for the 2008 U.S. Small Business Excellence Award are selected by students at George Washington University. Each finalist will receive a Dell business-class laptop and one-year NFIB membership and go on to compete for the national award to be announced June 9, 2008, at the NFIB National Small-Business Summit in Washington, D.C.

“Just to be a finalist is such a great honor,” says Ryan. “I am a one-man operation, so to compete with the other 9 small businesses from such impressive demographics is a thrill."

SoftPlan wishes Ryan the best of luck not only with this award but with all future endeavors of his business.