ISNULL with NULLIF to avoid empty string

--general function if null then ''
ISNULL(the_field, '')

--with NULLIF check for empty field
ISNULL(NULLIF(the_field,''), '')

--select all records that is not null or empty
SELECT TOP 100 * FROM table WHERE  ISNULL(NULLIF(the_field,'' ),NULL) IS NOT NULL ORDER BY 1 DESC   

--Comparing NULLIF and CASE

USE AdventureWorks2008R2;
GO
SELECT ProductID, MakeFlag, FinishedGoodsFlag, 
   NULLIF(MakeFlag,FinishedGoodsFlag)AS 'Null if Equal'
FROM Production.Product
WHERE ProductID < 10;
GO

SELECT ProductID, MakeFlag, FinishedGoodsFlag,'Null if Equal' =
   CASE
       WHEN MakeFlag = FinishedGoodsFlag THEN NULL
       ELSE MakeFlag
   END
FROM Production.Product
WHERE ProductID < 10;
GO