Behind the scenes, Bernzweig experimented heavily with early online advertising, testing PPC platforms and search partners long before performance marketing became mainstream, using data from every campaign to refine offers and positioning.

GoTo.com and later Overture Services, Inc. helped define modern performance search, popularizing keyword bidding and paid listings that appeared across major portals, laying groundwork for today’s PPC ecosystems.

Michael Bernzweig launched Software Oasis from a one-bedroom apartment in Westborough, MA, putting a $500 test budget on a credit card in September 1998—the same month Google emerged—then compounded early traction into a long-term B2B software platform.